Modi invokes Janata Janardan: Mann Ki Baat my offering, helps me connect

In a conversation with changemakers where nostalgia and emotions didn’t hold back,  he said that when he moved to Delhi in 2014 to take charge as Prime Minister, “something felt different, there was an emptiness”.

“The very countrymen who are my everything… I could not live separated from them. Mann Ki Baat gave me a solution to this challenge, a way to connect with the common man. The post and protocol remained limited to the system and public sentiment, along with crores of people, became an inseparable part of my inner world. Every month I read thousands of messages from the people of the country, every month I get to view one or the other wonderful manifestation of the countrymen. I see and feel the extremities of the penance and sacrifice of the countrymen. I just don’t feel that I am even a little far from you.”

External Affairs Minister S Jaishankar, India’s Ambassador to US Taranjit Singh Sandhu and others listen to the 100th episode of Mann Ki Baat, in New Jersey, USA, on Sunday. PTI

For me, Mann Ki Baat is not a programme, for me it is a matter of faith, of worship, or vrat. Like when people go to worship God, they bring along a thaal of prasad. For me, Mann Ki Baat is like a thaal of prasad at the feet of God in the form of Janata Janardan, the people. Mann Ki Baat has become a spiritual journey of my being… a journey from the self to the collective… from myself to ourselves. It is not me, but you are its Sanskar Sadhana,” he said.

“Imagine, some of our countrymen have been planting trees on deserted hills and barren land for 40-odd  years, many people have been digging stepwells and ponds for water conservation for 30-odd years, cleaning them as well. Some have been teaching underprivileged children for 25-30 years, some are helping in the treatment of the poor. I have become emotional while mentioning them many times in Mann Ki Baat. Friends from AIR had to re-record it many times. Today, a lot from the past is coming in front of my eyes. These efforts of the countrymen have inspired me to continuously keep striving,” he said.

BJP president J P Nadda in Honnali, Karnataka. PTI

“The people who we mention in Mann Ki Baat are all our heroes who have made this programme come alive. Today, when we have reached the milestone of the 100th episode, I also wish that we once again go to all these heroes to know about their journey.”

Sunil Jaglan, who started the ‘Selfie with Daughter’ campaign in Haryana, a state with a skewed sex ratio, was the first one to join the Prime Minister on the show via a call. “The fourth battle of Panipat that you started from our state to bring smiles on the faces of the daughters, which the whole country has tried to win under your leadership, is really important for me, for every daughter’s father and those who love daughters,” Jaglan said.

Soon after being mentioned on the show, ‘Selfie with Daughter’ turned into a global campaign, Modi said, and the result of many such efforts is that today the gender ratio in Haryana has improved.

The Prime Minister also spoke of others who have been working on themes close to his heart — be it environment, water conservation, education, health, women empowerment.

Union Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman and others in New Delhi. PTI

Manzoor Ahmed, while talking about the pencil slates of J&K that became popular after being mentioned on the show, said, “The work has increased a lot since then, and I have been able to also employ more than 200 people.” Ahmed said he is looking to expand it further and offer employment to another 200 people.

Vijayashanti Devi from Manipur, who makes clothes from lotus fibre, said she now has a team of 30 and this year will expand it with 100 women. She said she is also looking to export the eco-friendly fibre to the US. The Prime Minister said Vocal for Local was now becoming Local for Global.

Pradeep Sangwan who runs a cleanliness campaign called Healing Himalayas also spoke about his work.

The Prime Minister mentioned the show’s global connect. He recalled how then US President Barack Obama had participated in one of the episodes and that UNESCO Director General Audrey Azoulay was joining the 100th episode.

Azoulay asked how India, with the largest population in the world, plans to achieve the objective of education for all by 2030, and to put culture and education at the top of the international agenda.

Maharashtra Governor Ramesh Bais with actors Madhuri Dixit and Shahid Kapoor, and others in Mumbai. PTI

Modi said that education and cultural preservation have been the favourite topics of Mann Ki Baat. “The work that the country is doing in this direction today is really commendable. Be it the National Education Policy or the option of studying in a regional language, or technology integration in education, you will notice many such efforts,” he said.

“I have an unwavering belief that the biggest change can be brought about by collective effort. This year, where we are moving forward in the Azadi Ka Amrit Kaal, we are also presiding over the G20. This is also one of the reasons why our resolve to enrich diverse global cultures along with education has become stronger,” he said.

He concluded the episode with a mantra from the Upanishads: Charaiveti Charaiveti Charaiveti (keep moving, keep moving, keep moving).