Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Saturday said the world is watching how India’s daughters are proving their mettle in the arena of water, land, sky and space and that this has been made possible due to constant efforts in the last 10 years. Speaking at the annual NCC-PM rally here, the Prime Minister said ‘women were earlier confined to cultural programmes’, but the Central government has opened various sectors to them, including all the three defence services, and they are making a mark in every field. He said women officers are being given permanent commission in the three defence services and are being placed in command roles and combat positions in the forces. “Today you see, from Agniveer to fighter pilot, the participation of daughters is increasing a lot. Earlier, even in Sainik schools, daughters were not allowed to study. Now, our daughters are studying in many Sainik schools across the country,” the PM said. He said the number of women personnel in the central security forces has more than doubled in 10 years and states are also being encouraged to have more women in their police force. “When daughters go into such professions, it also impacts the mentality of society. This helps in reducing crimes against women,” he said. He said the participation of daughters in other sectors of society is also increasing. “Be it banking, insurance or service delivery in every village, a large number of our daughters are involved in these. Today, be it start-ups or self-help groups, daughters are leaving their mark in every field,” said PM Modi. He said in the next 25 years, he will not be the beneficiary of the developed India that will be created. “Its biggest beneficiaries are the youth of my country like you,” he said. He said the previous government referred to border villages as the last villages of the country, but for his government, they are the “first villages” of the country, adding that the government has launched a ‘vibrant village’ programme for their development.
