New India @ 70 and your contribution best speech
Answers
In his 4th Independence Day address from the ramparts of Red Fort, marking the country's 70th year of Independence, Modi called for the creation of New India by 2022 with focus on infrastructure development.
Modi used his address, which lasted 55 minutes, to reel out the various steps taken on the economic front by the Government to free the country from corruption and black money.
A substantial part of his address was focused on the Government initiatives to strengthen the economy including the farm sector. "The speedy, timebound rollout of GST is an example of what we can achieve. The Government looks to deliver what it promises. Without reducing speed, we are taking India to new track," he said. For instance, GST implementation has improved transport sector efficiency by 30 per cent.
Asserting that initiatives such as note ban had curbed black money generation, Modi shared numbers including the estimated return of Rs 3 lakh crore to the banking system post demonetisation. Also, demonetisation has led to spurt in the number of income tax filers with 56 new IT filers coming in April-Aug 5 this year as against 22 lakh in the same period last year.
Focusing on the Government's anti-black money drive, Modi said that stringent action has been taken on shell companies and had shut 1.75 lakh dormant/shell companies recently.
On benami properties, Modi said that his Government had taken the initiative of implementing the benami prohibition law and till date over Rs 800 crore of benami properties have been taken over by the State.
Modi also had special mention about the youth who are turning 18, inviting them to play a big role in economic development.
Of the Rs 3 lakh crore that had come back to banking system, as much as Rs 2 lakh crore is under scrutiny (for income tax levy).
On Kashmir, Modi invited Kashmiris to start a dialogue and join the mainstream. He said that the age old dispute can only be resolved with compassion. "Na Gali se na goli se, Kashmir ki samasya suljhegi Gale lagane se", Modi said.(Kashmir issue cannot be solved with either bullets or abuses, but with love). Modi said that the Centre was committed to restoring Kashmir's status as 'heaven on earth'. Along with the Kashmir Government, it is also the nation's concern to develop J&K and it's youth.
He also referred to the recent tragedy in Gorakhpur and noted that people of India stand shoulder to shoulder with those affected.
Modi also announced that a special portal is being launched in honour of the gallantry award winners. This portal will have details and profiles of the gallantry award winners.
Greetings to all of you on the eve of the 72nd Republic Day of the world's largest and most vibrant democracy. In this land of ours, enriched by diversity, with many festivals, our national festivals are celebrated by everyone with great patriotic fervour. We celebrate the national festival of the Republic Day with enthusiasm and express our respect for the national flag, and our faith in the Constitution.
This day has come to mean a lot to all Indians living within the country and abroad. Seventy-one years ago, on this very day, we the people of India adopted, enacted and gave to ourselves a unique Constitution. For all of us, then, this is the day to also pause and ponder over the core values that the Constitution propounds. These values – Justice, Liberty, Equality, and Fraternity – outlined in the Preamble of our Constitution are sacred to all of us. Its abiding adherence is meant not only for those who are mandated to govern but for the people at large.
It is not without reason that the wise men and women who framed the Constitution chose to place these four terms at the very beginning of the Constitution to build the foundation on which the edifice of our democracy rests. In fact, these were the values that guided our freedom struggle. A galaxy of great leaders and thinkers like Bal Gangadhar 'Tilak', Lala Lajpat Rai, Mahatma Gandhi and Subhas Chandra Bose inspired our freedom struggle. They had diverse dreams of a magnificent future of the motherland, but common to their aspirations were these values: Justice, Liberty, Equality, and Fraternity.
I would like that we go further back into history and inquire why precisely these values guided our nation-builders. And the answer is obvious: This land and its inhabitants have cherished these ideals from the time immemorial. Justice, Liberty, Equality, and Fraternity are perennial principles of our philosophy of life. They come to us from the dawn of this civilisation through an unbroken chain. It is, of course, the task of every generation to seek out the meaning of these values for its times. As the freedom fighters did in their day, so should we in our time. These key principles should light our path to development.