10 top quotes of Prime Minister Narendra Modi - Aug 15, 2014

NEW DELHI: Addressing the nation from the iconic Red Fort on Independence Day, Prime Minister Narendra Modi sought to invigorate the spirit of the nation with an impassioned appeal to the people to rise above petty issues and move forward as one unified unit.

He also laid out the agenda of the government and its main goals. 

Here are the top 10 quotes from the PM's address. 

1. I can promise you. If you work 12 hours, I will work for 13. If you work 14 hours, I will work for 15 hours. Why? Because I am not a pradhan mantri, but a pradhan sevak. 

2. I am an outsider in New Delhi. I have stayed away from the elite in this city. In the 2 months I have been here, I now have an insider view. I was astonished. I saw many governments functioning within a government. One department is fighting the other. So, we are trying to break this wall; we want to have one mission and target: Take the nation forward.

3. I come from a poor family and I want the poor to get dignity. We want to start a movement for a clean India. If we have to build a nation, let us start from the villages.

4. Be it caste or communal violence, they stall the growth of the nation. Let us affirm that we will be free from these tensions.

5. Can someone tell me, whatever we are doing, have we asked ourselves if our work has helped the poor or come to benefit the nation in any way? We should come out of the 'Why should I care' attitude and dedicate ourselves to the nation's progress.

6. India used to be known as the land of snake charmers. Today, our IT professionals have left the world spellbound.

7. From ramparts of the Red Fort, I would like to call people of the world to 'come, make in India'. I want to tell the global companies that we have skill, talent and discipline... From electronics to electricals, from chemicals to pharmaceuticals, come, make in India. Paper to plastic, automobiles to agricultural products, come, make in India, from satellite to submarine, come, make in India. We have the capabilities. Come here and manufacture in India. Sell the products anywhere in the world but manufacture here... we have the power, come, I am inviting you.

8. The mantra of our country's youth should be to at least make 1 product that we import. Don't compromise in manufacturing; Stress on Zero defect, Zero effect (impact of environment). Our manufacturing should have zero defects so that our products should not be rejected in the global market. Besides, we should also keep in mind that manufacturing should not have any negative impact on our environment.

9. I want to ask parents, when daughters turn 11 or 14, they keep a tab on their movements. Have these parents ever asked their sons where they have been going, who they have been meeting? Rapists are somebody's sons as well! Parents must take the responsibility to ensure that their sons don't go the wrong direction.

10. India's sex ratio is 1000 boys for 940 girls. Who creates this disparity? It isn't God. Don't fill your coffers by sacrificing the mother's womb. People feel that sons will take care of them when they are old. But I have seen aged parents in old-age homes. I have seen families where one daughter serves parents more than five sons.

My comments…….

I am in total agreement to the points raised by Sri Narendra Modi, and we, Indians, must ensure that the ideals and principles thereof are adhered to for the welfare and progress of the people of India, and India – Prathapan Gopalan – Prathap G., Sharjah, @librahitech