Varanasi, Sep 17 (PTI) Uttar Pradesh Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath on Thursday linked Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s 25-year journey in public life to the “changing face” of India’s villages, saying the impact of his resolve for service could be seen in the stories of self-reliance in rural areas.
Addressing the launch of the Seva Sankalp Abhiyan in Varanasi on Modi’s 76th birthday, Adityanath said Modi’s journey from Gujarat chief minister to prime minister had given the country a vision of a “new India” that was secure, confident and prepared to engage with the world.
He said that in the 25-year journey that began in Gujarat on October 7, 2001 — when Modi took oath as the chief minister — there “may not be a single citizen of India who has not been directly or indirectly a participant”.
“Bina ruke, bina dige, bina thake (without stopping, without wavering, without tiring), with the mantra of ‘charaiveti, charaiveti (march on)’, he continued this journey,” he said.
The chief minister said Modi’s journey from an ordinary family in Gujarat to becoming the prime minister and, in his words, “the world’s most popular political leader”, was now being witnessed by people in India and abroad.
He said the impact of the 25-year journey was particularly visible at the grassroots. “This 25-year-long glorious journey can be seen in the changing picture of that village, where villages today are telling stories of self-reliance,” Adityanath said.
Linking Modi’s tenure with the redevelopment of major religious and cultural centres, citing the transformation of Kashi Vishwanath Dham and the construction of the Ram Janmabhoomi Temple in Ayodhya, Adityanath further said these developments represented the fulfilment of long-standing aspirations associated with India’s religious heritage. The Ram temple, in particular, came after what Adityanath has described as a “500-year wait” for the fulfilment of the Ram Janmabhoomi aspiration.
The Seva Sankalp campaign is also highlighting the redevelopment of major religious and cultural sites as part of the broader development narrative associated with Modi’s 25 years in public life, the chief minister pointed out.
He was present at the Varanasi event along with Defence Minister Rajnath Singh, Andhra Pradesh Chief Minister N Chandrababu Naidu, Union Minister Chirag Paswan and Union Minister as well as BJP’s Uttar Pradesh chief Pankaj Chaudhary.
Adityanath said Modi’s leadership had presented Indians with a “new India” which was “secure and capable of engaging with the world with confidence”.
He also connected the two-way Seva Yatra being launched from Varanasi and Vadnagar with Modi’s personal journey. He said Vadnagar, where Modi was born in an ordinary family, represented the starting point of that journey, while Varanasi represented his present-day public life.
The two journeys, carrying sacred waters from Gujarat and Uttar Pradesh, would connect the two places and promote the spirit of ‘Ek Bharat, Shreshtha Bharat’, he said.
The chief minister said the journeys would continue until October 7 and would involve young participants undertaking service-related programmes along the routes.
“Today, we are beginning a journey that will take the importance of Kashi to 10 states and carry the journey of Vadnagar to those states,” he said.
Adityanath also greeted Modi on his birthday and prayed for his health and longevity.
He said the Seva Sankalp Abhiyan was aimed at carrying forward Modi’s resolve for service and contributing to the goal of an Atmanirbhar and Viksit Bharat by 2047.
The chief minister also congratulated the young participants joining the yatra, saying they had contributed their time to make the initiative part of the commemoration of Modi’s 25 years in public life. PTI KIS PRK
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