PM’s speech at the inauguration and laying foundation stone ceremony of multiple projects in Pithoragarh, Uttarakhand
Speaker: Narendra Modi
Date: 12 Oct, 2023

Bharat Mata Ki Jai! Bharat Mata Ki Jai! The popular and young Chief Minister of Uttarakhand Bhai Pushkar Singh Dhami ji, Union Minister Shri Ajay Bhatt ji, former Chief Minister Ramesh Pokhriyal Nishank ji, State President of Bharatiya Janata Party Mahendra Bhatt ji, Ministers of Uttarakhand Government, all MPs, MLAs, other dignitaries and my dear family members of Devbhoomi, greetings to all of you! Today Uttarakhand has done wonders. Perhaps no one has had the privilege of witnessing such a scene before. Wherever I went across Uttarakhand since morning, I was showered with immense love and blessings; It seemed as if the river (Ganga) of love was flowing. I salute this land of spirituality and unmatched bravery. I particularly salute the brave mothers. When the battle cry of “Jai Badri-Vishal” is raised in Badrinath Dham, the spirit and vigour of the bravehearts of Garhwal Rifles rises. When the bells of the Kalika temple of Gangolihat echo with the battle cry of “Jai Mahakali”, indomitable courage starts flowing among the heroes of the Kumaon Regiment. Here we have the splendour of Bageshwar in Manaskhand, Baijnath, Nanda Devi, Golu Devta, Purnagiri, Kasar Devi, Kainchi Dham, Katarmal, Nanakmatta, Reetha sahib and countless pilgrimage sites. We possess a rich heritage. Whenever I come to this pilgrimage centre of national defence and spirituality, and think of you, I feel blessed. My family members, Before coming here, I had the privilege of worshipping at Parvati Kund and Jageshwar Dham. I have sought blessings for the good health of every countryman and to strengthen the resolve for a developed Bharat and for all the dreams and resolutions of my Uttarakhand to be fulfilled. A short while back, I also met our border guards and our soldiers. I also got a chance to meet all our sisters and brothers associated with local art and self-help groups. This way, my new kind of journey was linked to these three aspects related to Bharat’s culture, Bharat’s security and Bharat’s prosperity. I had a darshan of everything in this single journey. This strength of Uttarakhand is amazing and unparalleled. That’s why I had expressed one belief at the feet of Baba Kedar; and I believe that this decade is going to be the decade of Uttarakhand. And today I went to Adi Kailash. So let me reiterate my belief once again. To ensure that Uttarakhand reaches new heights of development and to make life easier for you, our government is working today with complete sincerity, full dedication and with only one goal in mind. Right now, the development projects worth more than Rs 4,000 crore have either been inaugurated or their foundation stones have been laid. Rs 4,000 crore in a single programme! Can you imagine my brothers and sisters of Uttarakhand? I congratulate all of you for these projects. My family members, Neither these paths are new for me nor are all of you. This sense of belonging to Uttarakhand always remains within me. And I have seen that you also remain connected to me with the same sense of belonging and affection. Many friends, even from far away villages of Uttarakhand write letters to me. They stand by me in good and bad times. If a new member is born in the family, they send me the news; if their daughter excels in her studies, they write letters. That means, Uttarakhand is now connected to me like I am a member of the entire Uttarakhand family. You also share the joy when the country achieves something big. If you see any scope for improvement, you never shy away from telling me that too. Recently the country has taken a major historic decision to reserve 33 percent seats for women in the Lok Sabha and Assemblies. The work that was pending for 30, 40 years, has been accomplished by your brother/ son with the blessings of my mothers and sisters. And interestingly, even during that time the sisters here have sent me several letters. My family members, With the blessings of all of you, today Bharat is moving towards new heights of development. Bharat and Indians are being praised all over the world. It’s happening, isn’t it? Bharat’s voice is being heard all over the world, isn’t it? There was a time when there was an atmosphere of despair all around. It seemed as if the entire country had plunged into despair. At that time, we used to go to every temple and prayed so that Bharat could come out of its challenges as soon as possible. Every Indian wanted to free the country from scams worth thousands of crores. Everyone wished that Bharat could gain fame and popularity. Today, this world is surrounded by various challenges. You can see the condition of the world. But Bharat’s voice is becoming robust in the world surrounded by challenges. Just a few weeks ago, such a grand event like G-20 took place here. Even there, you have seen how the world has recognized the strength of us Indians. You tell me, do you like it when the world praises Bharat, when Bharat’s voice echoes in the world? Will you answer me? May I ask you, and will you tell me? Do you like it when Bharat’s name shines bright in the world? Tell me loudly, do you like it? Do you like it when Bharat shows a direction to the world? Who has done all this? Who has done all this? Modi has not done this. Everything has been done by you and my family members. The credit for this goes to all of you, the public. Why? Just remember why! It is because after 30 years, you gave me an opportunity to serve you by forming a stable and strong government in Delhi. There is power in your vote. You must have seen that when I shake hands with important people around the world, I also make eye contact with them. And when they look at me, they do not see me; they look at the 140 crore Indians. My family members, We also thought about the people who live in far-off mountains and in every remote corner of the country. Therefore, in just 5 years, 13.5 crore people in the country came out of poverty. 13.5 crore people – will you remember this figure? Will you remember the figure? 13.5 crore people coming out of poverty in five years is surprising to the world. Who are these 13.5 crore people? Many of these people live in the mountains like you do and in remote areas. These 13.5 crore people are an example of the fact that Bharat can eradicate its poverty. Friends, Earlier slogans of ‘Garibi Hatao’ were raised. Meaning you should eradicate it; they asked you to eradicate poverty. But Modi is saying that together we will continue to eradicate poverty. We take up the responsibility and put all our efforts with utmost sincerity. Today our tricolor is fluttering higher and higher in every sector and every field. Our Chandrayaan has reached where no other country in the world has been able to reach. And Bharat has named that spot touched by Chandrayaan as Shiva-Shakti. My people of Uttarakhand, are you happy with the idea of Shiva-Shakti or not? That means the identity of my Uttarakhand has reached there too. There is no need to teach in Uttarakhand what this unification of Shiva and Shakti means. It is clearly visible here at every step. Friends, Today the world is witnessing Bharat’s strength not only in space but also in sports. Recently the Asian Games have ended. In the Games, Bharat has broken all the historical records. For the first time, Indian players scored a century and created a record of winning more than 100 medals. Kindly applaud a little louder. 8 sons and daughters of Uttarakhand also participated in Asian Games to show their mettle. And, our Lakshya Sen’s team won a medal and Vandana Kataria’s hockey team has also brought a medal for the country. These children of Uttarakhand have done wonders! Will you do one thing? Take out your mobile phones and turn on their flashlights. And congratulate all these players by using your flashlights. Everyone, take out your mobile phones and turn on the flashlights; well done. This is our congratulations to the children of Uttarakhand, to our players. I once again congratulate my young sons and daughters of Devbhoomi and these players. And you too have added a feather in the cap today. Friends, Sit down; I am very grateful to you. The government is providing full support to the players of Bharat so that they can touch great heights of success within the country and around the world. From food to modern training of the players, the government is spending crores of rupees. This is true but the opposite is also true. The government is doing it for the players but Lakshya’s family and Lakshya always bring me special sweets whenever he is victorious. To ensure that players do not have to travel very far, the government is also constructing sports grounds at various places. Today itself the foundation stones of hockey ground in Haldwani and Velodrome Stadium in Rudrapur have also been laid. Give a big round of applause, my youngsters. Work is being done for you. The youth of my Uttarakhand will benefit from this. I also congratulate Dhami ji and his entire team, who are enthusiastically preparing for the National Games. Many congratulations to you and your entire team! My family members, There are defenders of the country in every village of Uttarakhand. The brave mothers here have given birth to brave sons who are protecting my country. Their decades-old demand of ‘One Rank One Pension’ has been fulfilled by our own government. So far, our government has given more than Rs 70 thousand crores to the ex-servicemen under One Rank One Pension. Families of more than 75,000 ex-servicemen of Uttarakhand have also benefited from this. Development in border areas is also one of the main priorities of our government. Today, construction of facilities in border areas is going on at a very rapid pace. You must be wondering what your fault was; why did the earlier governments not do this? It was not your fault. Earlier governments did not develop the border areas due to the fear that the enemy might take advantage of it and penetrate the border. This was the argument given by them. Today’s new Bharat is moving forward, leaving behind this fearful thinking of the earlier governments. Neither are we afraid nor do we scare people. We are building modern roads, tunnels, and bridges along the entire border of Bharat. In the last 9 years, more than 4200 kilometers of roads have been built in border areas alone. We have also built about 250 major bridges and 22 tunnels along the border. Even today, the foundation stones for many new bridges have been laid in this programme. Now we are also preparing to bring trains to the border areas. Uttarakhand is also going to get the benefit of this changed mindset. My family members, Earlier the border areas, border villages were considered to be the last villages of the country. Something that is considered to be last is given the least priority in terms of development too. This was also an old thought. We have started developing the border villages not as the last but the first villages of the country. Under the Vibrant Village Programme, similar border villages are being developed. Our effort is to ensure that the people who have migrated from here should return. We want tourism to expand in these villages and pilgrimage to expand. My family members, There is an old saying that the ‘water and youth power of the hills generally remain untapped by the hill region’. I have resolved that I will change this concept too. You have also seen that due to the wrong policies of the past, many villages of Uttarakhand were deserted. There was a lack of roads, electricity, water, education, medicine, income, everything and due to this lack of amenities people had to leave their homes. Now the circumstances are changing. As new opportunities and new facilities are being developed in Uttarakhand, many friends have started returning to their villages. It is due to the double engine effort of the government that this work of helping people return to the villages is being done rapidly. That is why such massive investments are being made on these roads, power projects, hospitals, schools and colleges and mobile phone towers. Today several projects related to these have been started here. There are a lot of possibilities for growing apple orchards, fruits and vegetables here. Now that roads are being built here and water is being supplied, my farmer brothers and sisters are also getting encouraged. Today, the schemes to build a polyhouse and develop an apple orchard have also started. Rs 1100 crore will be invested on these schemes. So much money is being allocated to improve the lives of our small farmers of Uttarakhand. Even under PM Kisan Samman Nidhi, farmers of Uttarakhand have so far received more than Rs 2200 crore. Friends, Even coarse grains or ‘Shri Anna’ have been grown here for many generations. I have spent a lot of time amidst you when I lived here. At that time, coarse grains were also consumed in abundance in every household. Now the Central Government wants to take this coarse grain to every corner of the world. For this, a campaign has been started across the country. Our small farmers of Uttarakhand are also going to benefit a lot from these steps. My family members, Our government is committed to removing every challenge and every inconvenience of mothers and sisters. That’s why our government gave pucca houses to the poor sisters. We built toilets for our sisters and daughters, gave them gas connections, bank accounts and provided free treatment. Even today, the free ration programme is being continued so that cooking doesn’t stop for the poor. Under the Har Ghar Jal Yojana, sisters of 11 lakh families in Uttarakhand are getting piped water facilities. Now another work is being done for the sisters. This year, from the ramparts of the Red Fort, I have made the announcement of providing drones to women self-help groups. Pesticides, fertilizers, seeds, and many such things can be used in the fields with the help of drones. Now such drones are also being made which can deliver fruits and vegetables to the nearest vegetable market. Medicines can be delivered quickly with drones in the mountain regions. That is, these drones provided to women self-help groups are going to take Uttarakhand to new heights of modernity. My family members, In Uttarakhand, there is Ganga and Gangotri in every village. Lord Shiva and Nanda reside on the snow-capped peaks here. Fairs, Kauthig, Thaul, songs, music and food of Uttarakhand have their own unique identity. This land is rich with cultural events like Pandav dance, Chholiya dance, Mangal Geet, Phool dei festival, Harela, Bagwal and Ramman. Who can forget the tastes of folk life: Rott, Aarse, Jhangore ki Kheer, Kafuli, Pakora, Raita, Almora’s Bal Mithai, Singori. And I have a strong connection with this land of Kali Ganga. I also have a deep connection with the Advaita Ashram located here in Champawat. That was a chapter of my life. Several of my memories are etched on every inch of the ground here. This time I really wanted to spend more time in this divine region. But tomorrow there is another major conference related to G-20 in Delhi. The Speakers of the Parliaments from G20 countries around the world are going to have a major summit. And because of that, I will not be able to go to Advaita Ashram of Champawat. I pray to God that I get a chance to visit this ashram again soon. My family members, The efforts of the double engine government related to the development of tourism and pilgrimage in Uttarakhand are now bearing fruit. This year, the number of devotees coming for Chardham Yatra in Uttarakhand has increased to around 50 lakhs. All records have been broken. With the blessings of Baba Kedar, the first phase related to the reconstruction of Kedarnath Dham has been completed. Many projects are also being completed in Shri Badrinath Dham at a cost of hundreds of crores of rupees. As soon as the work of the ropeway in Kedarnath Dham and Shri Hemkund Sahib is completed, the Divyang and elderly pilgrims are going to get a lot of benefits. Our government is also trying to take Manaskhand to new heights besides Kedarkhand and that is why I have come here today. We are also laying a great emphasis upon the connectivity of Kedarkhand and Manaskhand. Efforts are being made to ensure that those who visit Kedarnath and Badrinath Dham can also easily visit Jageshwar Dham, Adi Kailash and Om Parvat. Due to the Manaskhand Mandir Mala Mission, it will be a lot easier to reach many temples of Kumaon. As per my experience, people who come to Badrinath and Kedarnath will definitely visit this area in future. They are not aware of this area. And today, when people will watch the video on TV of Modi visiting this place, they will think ‘there must be something special about the place’ and you must be prepared, the number of visitors are going to increase manifold. Manaskhand will be thronged by people. Friends, The increasing connectivity of Uttarakhand is going to take the development here to new heights. You have benefitted a lot from the Char Dham Maha Pariyojana and the all-weather road. After the completion of Rishikesh-Karnaprayag rail project, the entire area will be revamped. Affordable air services are also being expanded in this entire region under the UDAN scheme. Today itself, the work on the roads from Bageshwar to Kanalichinna, from Gangolihat to Almora and from Tanakpur Ghat to Pithoragarh has started. This will not only provide convenience to the common people but will also increase the income opportunities through tourism. I am glad that the government here is encouraging homestays. Tourism is a sector where there is maximum employment and least capital is required. The tourism sector is going to expand a lot in the coming times because the whole world wants to come to Bharat today, to explore Bharat and to know Bharat. And the ones who want to visit Bharat, their trip is not complete without coming to Uttarakhand. My family members, I am well aware of the way Uttarakhand has been beset by natural disasters in the past. We have lost many of our loved ones. We have to keep improving our preparedness to deal with natural disasters and we will keep doing so. For this, Rs 4000 crores will be spent in Uttarakhand in the coming 4-5 years. Such facilities will be developed in Uttarakhand, so that in case of a disaster, relief and rescue work can be done quickly. My family members, This is Bharat’s ‘Amritkaal’. This ‘Amritkaal’ is the period to connect every region and every section of the country with facilities, honour and prosperity. I am confident that with the blessings of Baba Kedar and Badri Vishal, with the blessings of Adi Kailash, we will be able to fulfil our resolutions quickly. Once again thank you for giving me so much love! Really, I have no words to describe how I feel. I travelled 7 kilometres to come here after getting off the helicopter, And I was delayed because there was no human chain rather a human wall on both sides during that 7 kilometres of journey. There was such a crowd as if there was a festival in the family. Everyone was dressed in festive clothes, and it looked like an auspicious festive atmosphere. Mothers were ready to shower their blessings with their aartis, and flower bouquets in their hands. These were very emotional moments for me. Today, my Manaskhand has shown such love and enthusiasm to me. So, I salute and express my heartfelt gratitude to Pithoragarh and all the people of Pithoragarh district, and this entire region. Once again, my best wishes to all of you! Say aloud with me; raise both your hands and say with all your might – Bharat Mata Ki Jai! Bharat Mata Ki Jai! Bharat Mata Ki Jai! Thank you very much!