AMN / NEW DELHI
Addressing the nation in his Mann Ki Baat programme on All India Radio, touching on the topic of cleanliness Prime Minister Narendra Modi said it was Mahatma Gandhi who turned cleanliness into a mass movement. He said today’s youth should be aware of how the campaign for cleanliness continuously gave energy to the nation’s freedom movement.
Mr Modi stated that Mahatma Gandhi had connected cleanliness to Independence back then and now, the cleanliness movement has once again connected the country to the dream of a new India. Mr Modi said cleanliness is not just the responsibility of one government or the next, but a practice that should continue from generation to generation. He emphasised that cleanliness is a great tribute by this country to the revered Mahatma Gandhi and this is a tribute that must be paid year after year.
The Prime Minister spoke about Mann Ki Baat’s listener, Ramesh Patel, who wrote to him saying the nation should take the resolve of economic cleanliness as well to mark the Amrit Mahotsav. Mr Modi said economic cleanliness ensures rights of the poor and eases their life. He said due to the Jan Dhan scheme, rightful money of the poor is getting credited directly into their accounts and corruption has significantly reduced. The Prime Minister expressed delight that even in villages, the common person is now capable of digital transactions through fin-tech UPI. He said it is a matter of pride that 355 crore UPI transactions took place in the month of August this year.
He added that today, on average digital payments of more than two lakh crore rupees are taking place through UPI. He said the economy of the country is thereby acquiring cleanliness and transparency, and now everyone knows the importance of fin-tech.