The Prime Minister, Shri Narendra Modi replied to the motion of thanks on the President’s address to Parliament in the Lok Sabha today.

The Prime Minister said that the Hon'ble President gave direction to the nation in her visionary address to both Houses. He remarked that her address inspired the ‘Nari Shakti’ (women power) of India and gave a boost to the self-confidence of India's tribal communities while instilling a feeling of pride among them. “She gave a detailed blueprint of ‘Sankalp se Siddhi’ of the nation”, the Prime Minister said.

The Prime Minister noted that challenges might arise but with the determination of 140 crore Indians, the nation can overcome all the obstacles that come our way. He said that the handling of the country during once-in-a-century calamity and war has filled every Indian with confidence. Even in such a time of turmoil, India has emerged as the 5th largest economy in the world.

He said that there is positivity and hope towards India at a global level. The Prime Minister credited this positivity to stability, India’s global standing, the growing capability of India and new emerging possibilities in India. Throwing light on the atmosphere of trust in the country, the Prime Minister said that India has a government that is stable and decisive. He underlined the belief that reforms are not carried out of compulsion but by conviction. “The world is seeing prosperity in India’s prosperity”, he said.

The Prime Minister drew attention to the decade before 2014 and said that the years between 2004 to 2014 were burdened with scams and at the same time there were terror attacks happening in every corner of the country. This decade saw the decline of the Indian economy and the Indian voice grew very feeble on global fora. The era was marked by ‘Mauke main musibat’ - adversity in opportunity.

Noting that the country is full of self-confidence today and realising its dreams and resolutions, the Prime Minister said that the entire world is looking towards India with eyes of hope and credited the stability and possibility of India. He observed that India under UPA was called the ‘Lost Decade’ while today people are calling the present decade as ‘India’s Decade’.

Noting that India is the mother of democracy, the Prime Minister underlined that constructive criticism is vital for a strong democracy and said that criticism is like a ‘shuddhi yagya’ (purification yagya). The Prime Minister lamented that instead of constructive criticism, some people indulge in compulsive criticism. He observed that in the last 9 years, we have had compulsive critics who indulge in unsubstantiated allegations instead of constructive criticism. The Prime Minister said that such criticism will not pass muster with the people who are experiencing the basic facilities for the first time now. He said instead of a dynasty, he is a member of the family of 140 crore Indians. “The blessings of 140 crore Indians is my ‘Suraksha Kavach’”, the Prime Minister remarked.

The Prime Minister reiterated the commitment towards those who are deprived and neglected and asserted that the biggest benefit of the government’s scheme has gone to dalits, adivasis, women and vulnerable sections. Throwing light on the Nari Shakti of India, the Prime Minister informed that no efforts have been spared to strengthen India's Nari Shakti. He remarked that when the mothers of India are strengthened, then the people are strengthened, and when the people are strengthened it strengthens the society which leads to a strengthening of the nation. He also underlined that the government has addressed the aspirations of the middle class and honoured them for their honesty. Highlighting that the common citizens of India are full of positivity, the Prime Minister emphasised that even though the Indian society has the capability to deal with negativity, it never accepts this negativity.

***

DS/TS