On the occasion of Gandhi Jayanti, Union Home Minister and Minister of Cooperation Shri Amit Shah visited the Khadi India showroom in Connaught Place, New Delhi today. Shri Shah purchased Khadi products and made an online payment.

Union Home Minister and Minister of Cooperation Shri Amit Shah said on this occasion that Mahatma Gandhi recognized the soul of India and awakened the common people to stand against the British. He said that Mahatma Gandhi wove many elements into the freedom movement that continue to shape the map of India's future. Shri Shah said that two significant ideas—Khadi and Swadeshi emerged from these elements. He emphasized that the freedom movement cannot be viewed separately from Khadi and Swadeshi. Shri Shah added that by giving the country the concepts of Swadeshi and Khadi, Mahatma Gandhi not only accelerated the freedom movement but also brought light into the lives of many poor people in the country.

Shri Amit Shah said that for a long time, both the ideas of Khadi and Swadeshi were forgotten. In 2003, when Shri Narendra Modi was the Chief Minister of Gujarat, he launched a significant campaign to revive Khadi, and that marked the beginning of this movement. The Home Minister stated that Khadi has once again become an item of common use among people. He added that in the 11 years of Modi ji's tenure, the sales of Khadi and village industry products have increased fivefold from Rs. 33,000 crore to over Rs. 1.7 lakh crore.

Union Home Minister said that Prime Minister Modi, through his Mann Ki Baat program, has promoted the idea of Swadeshi, inspiring the people of the country to connect with economic development and the Make in India campaign. Inspired by this, millions of families across the country have decided not to use any foreign goods in their households. He added that similarly, millions of shopkeepers have resolved not to sell any foreign products in their shops.

Union Home Minister and Minister of Cooperation, while appealing to the people of the country to make the Khadi and Swadeshi campaigns successful, said that every family in the country should resolve to purchase Khadi products worth at least 5,000 rupees annually. This will provide employment to millions of people and bring light into their lives. Shri Shah stated that when we adopt the vow of Swadeshi, we also align ourselves with the ambitious campaign to take India to the top position in the world by 2047. He said that both campaigns—promoting the use of Khadi and embracing Swadeshi—launched by Prime Minister Modi should empower us. We should make these campaigns a part of our nature and pass them on to our future generations.

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RK/VV/PS/PR