The Prime Minister, Shri Narendra Modi inaugurated the Birth Centenary Celebrations of the legendary woman freedom fighter from the North-east, Rani Gaidinliu, at Vigyan Bhawan in New Delhi today. The Prime Minister also issued a commemorative coin of hundred rupees and circulation coin of five rupees on Rani Gaidinliu.

Referring to her as ‘Rani-maa’, the Prime Minister said it is our misfortune that people such as Rani Gaidinliu have either not been remembered adequately, or have been deliberately forgotten. He emphasized that India must remember the glorious heritage of the freedom struggle, and ensure that the legacy of the struggles and achievements of our freedom fighters is passed on to succeeding generations.

The Prime Minister credited Rani Gaidinliu with spreading the message of Mahatma Gandhi in the North-East. He said Rani-Maa’s thoughts on living in harmony with nature could provide an answer to the problem of climate change being faced by the world today.

Speaking at the function, the Union Home Minister Shri Rajnath Singh said that Rani Gaidinliu had won the love and affection of the people of North East with her revolutionary zeal.  She belonged to the North East region but joined the freedom struggle at the national level with Mahatama Gandhi and fought against the British for the freedom of the country. Shri Rajnath Singh said people born in palaces are normally called Rajas or Ranis but for someone born in a humble family, to earn the title of Ranima is possible only with the love and affection of the people. 

            The Home Minister said that Historians have not done justice to Rani Gaidinliu and the Government is now considering to include a chapter on her contribution to India’s freedom struggle in the educational curriculum.  Shri Rajnath Singh said that the recent peace accord with the NSCN (IM) takes forward the dream of Ranima of securing peace and stability in the region.

The Union Minister of Finance, Corporate Affairs and Information& Broadcasting, Shri Arun Jaitley said that with the celebration of birth centenary of Rani Gaidinliu, one of the most fascinating stories of a revolutionary leader is being retold today. The histories of such role models from the North-east must be told to the nation to further the cause of national integration, the Minister added. Ranima aligned her struggle to the national freedom movement and her contribution has gone a long way in emotionally integrating the region of  North-east to the rest of the country, Shri Jaitley explained. He said that the Centre is committed to providing better connectivity, education and improved quality of life to the people of the North-east and the recent Indo-Bangla land boundary agreement is one such significant step which will help to bring the north-east geographically closer to the rest of the country.

In his welcome speech, The Minister of State for Culture (Independent Charge), Tourism (Independent Charge) and Civil Aviation, Dr Mahesh Sharma said that the Birth Centenary Celebration of Rani Gaidinliu is in honor of the people of the North East as well as to create awareness among the people the greatness of Ranimaa and her struggle to keep the nation together.  He emphasized that the Centre is trying to bring the principles& idealism of Rani Gaidinliu before the nation for setting an example before the youth to contribute to their nation.

The Minister of State for Development of North Eastern Region (I/C), Dr. Jitendra Singh ,  while speaking on the occasion, said that Rani Gaidinliu is a symbol of the legacy of the Northeast, the heritage of Northeast and above all, the commitment of Naga people and Northeast people to the nationalistic ethos of India. He announced that, as a tribute to Rani Gaidinliu, the DoNER Ministry has allocated a fund of Rs.983.08 lakh for setting up a Library-cum-Museum at Kohima which would be dedicated to her.

Dr Jitendra Singh said that under the leadership of Prime Minister Shri Narendra Modi, the DoNER Ministry has recently introduced “DoNER At Door-step” experiment which  is unique in the history of independent India. Under the initiative, a “Camp Secretariat” of DoNER Ministry is held by rotation in each of the eight States of Northeast for the redressal of problems of the people.

The Governor of Nagaland and Assam, Shri P.B. Acharya, the Chief Minister of Manipur, Shri Okram Ibobi Singh & the Chief Minister of Nagaland, Shri T.R. Zeliang also spoke at the function. 

The inaugural function began with a musical performance by the Nagaland choir in the praise of Rani Gaidinliu.

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