Highlighting the achievements of his government in the last four years, Prime Minister Narendra Modi, in his last Independence Day address before the Lok Sabha elections, presented a rising India, in contrast to the “situation 2013”, and announced the launch of a national healthcare programme to cover 50 crore Indians as well as the country’s first manned space mission by 2022. Full text of PM Modi’s Independence Day speech Setting the stage for the 2019 electoral battle, Modi, addressing the nation Wednesday from the ramparts of the Red Fort, signalled that a major part of his election campaign would focus on the issues of women and farmers. Using phrases like “red tape to red carpet”, “policy paralysis and delayed reforms to reform and perform-and-transform” and “fragile five economies or sleeping elephant to a multi-trillion dollar investment destination”, the Prime Minister sought to highlight the changes his government had ushered in, the “remarkable strides” since 2014. He also underlined his government’s attempts to ensure social justice. Also Read | For women officers of armed forces, a dream fulfilled: Permanent commission Underlining the country’s rise in the new global order, he quoted poet Subramania Bharati, saying “India will show the way for the entire world to break free from every form of bondage”. Reciting another poem to describe how his government was changing India’s destiny and that it was capable of taking tough and courageous decisions in the interest of the country, he said he was impatient and restless because he wanted to see India march ahead of other countries in development. “Hum tod rahe hain zanjeerein, hum badal rahe hain tasveerein (we are breaking the shackles, we are changing the image),” he said. In his 80-minutes address, the Prime Minister focussed on empowerment and security of women. Announcing a permanent commission option for women officers of the armed forces, Modi said: “This is a gift from my side from the ramparts of the Red Fort, to the daughters who are in uniformed services and have dedicated their lives to the nation. The nation salutes the patriotic fervour and national commitment displayed by young girls who are our national pride.” India at 72 — Independence Day Celebrations: A call to help build on the India story Highlighting the contribution of women in all fields — from agriculture to sports — he sought to draw the nation’s attention to the “gruesome ugliness” in society. “Rape is painful, and we, the countrymen, the people, should feel many times more pain than the pain borne by the victim. Brothers and sisters, we have to free this society from this demonic mentality,” he said. Pointing out that the law is taking its course — he specifically mentioned about the quick trial and punishment of rapists in Madhya Pradesh and Rajasthan — the Prime Minister called for publicity of such news. “People should know that rapists are being sent to the gallows. There is a need to beat this mentality; there is a need to curb this thinking, and there is a need to stop this aberration.” Reiterating his government’s commitment to empower Muslim women by bringing in a law to ban triple talaq, Modi “reassured Muslim sisters” that the Bill which was being obstructed by “some people” would be brought in. “I want to assure my Muslim mothers, sisters and daughters that I will not stop till they get justice. I will fulfil your aspirations,” he said. PM Modi at Red Fort: Top quotes He took swipes the Opposition not only over the triple talaq Bill, but also on the performance of the previous UPA government. “If we had maintained the speed of 2013 in laying optical fibre network in villages, then we would not have been able to accomplish the task for generations together. We will strive to maintain the same pace of development,” he said, adding: “We can take tough decisions because nation’s interest is first for us, not the party’s.” Reaching out to farmers, Modi said: “I hail from Gujarat. There is a saying in Gujarati ‘Nishan chuk maaf lekin nahi maaf nichu nishan’ which means one should have big aims and dreams. Take for instance the case of MSP — economists, farmer organisations, farmers as well as political parties had been demanding that farmers should get an MSP which is one and a half times of their investment. The matter was debated for years, files moved to and fro, and but was stuck. Finally, we took the decision. We took a bold decision of giving the farmers the MSP which is one and half times their investment. We have a vision to double the farmers’ income by the 75th year of Independence. Some people have doubts, which is quite natural, but we are determined. Hum makkhan par lakeer nahi, patthar par lakeer kheenchne waale hain (We don’t promise things lightly, we mean to keep our word).” One of the big announcements he made was the rollout of the Ayushman Bharat-National Health Protection Mission, described as the world’s largest healthcare measure, on September 25, the birth anniversary of Pandit Deen Dayal Upadhyaya. He said the scheme will initially cover nearly 50 crore people from 10 crore families. He also announced an ambitious mission of sending an Indian astronaut to space by 2022. “We have resolved that by 2022, when India celebrates 75 years of Independence or may be even before that, certainly some of our young boys and girls will unfurl the Tricolour in space.” On J&K, the Prime Minister said “we do not want to move on the road of bullets and abuses (goli and gaali). we want to move ahead with love and affection with the Kashmiri people who have stood with us in patriotic fervour”. He said “the path shown by Atal Bihari Vajpayeeji is the right one. We want to move ahead on that road. Vajpayeeji said insaniyat, jamhooriyat, Kashmiriyat (humanism, democracy, Kashmiriyat). with these three basic elements, we want to develop Jammu & Kashmir. Whether it is Ladakh or Jammu or Srinagar valley. We want balanced development where an ordinary person’s aspirations are fulfilled, infrastructure is strengthened; we want to move ahead with brotherhood in our hearts.” Express Opinion | PM Modi’s speech underlines he’s acted with pace and purpose, impatient to do more He highlighted his government’s efforts to protect the interests of Dalits and backward classes and said the recent Parliament session was totally dedicated to social justice. Reiterating his government’s commitment to ‘sabka saath, sabka vikas’ or inclusive development, he spoke on housing, power, clean cooking, water, connectivity, sanitation, skills, health and insurance for all. Referring to schemes like Ujjwala and Saubhagya Yojana, Modi said that the “dignity of an individual was as important as economic growth” of the country. He promised not to spare the corrupt and black money hoarders, saying the efforts of his government had freed corridors of power from brokers, enhanced the number of taxpayers and saved Rs 90,000 crore by eliminating bogus beneficiaries of many schemes. Listing measures that brought the untaxed into the tax net, he said the number of income tax payers had increased to 6.75 crore from 3.5-4 crore before 2014.
