The Nation pays homage to the Father of the Nation, Mahatma Gandhi on his 150th birth anniversary today. A series of activities are being organized across the country and by Indian Missions abroad.
A Sarva Dharma Prarthana Sabha was organised at Rajghat, the Samadhi of Mahatma Gandhi in the National Capital.
President Ram Nath Kovind, Vice President M Venkaiah Naidu, Prime Minister Narendra Modi, former Prime Minister Dr Manmohan Singh, Lok Sabha Speaker Om Birla, Rajya Sabha Deputy Chairman Harivansh, several Union Ministers, BJP veteran L K Advani, BJP working president J P Nadda paid floral tributes to Bapu at his Samadhi.
In the evening, the Prime Minister will visit Sabarmati Ashram in Ahmedabad and take part in plogging to make the ashram free of single-use plastic. The Prime Minister drew the nation’s attention towards plogging in his Mann Ki Baat address on Sunday.
Later, the Prime Minister will go to the Sabarmati riverfront where he will declare the country open defecation-free in the presence of over 20,000 village heads.
Apart from launching a book titled ‘My Life is My Message’, Prime Minister Modi will also release commemorative postal stamps and coins to mark 150th Birth Anniversary of Mahatma Gandhi.
In a message last evening, President Ram Nath Kovind said, Mahatma Gandhi is a global icon revered across continents and he showed everyone the path to communal unity, removal of untouchability and upliftment of women. The President in his message said, it is a special occasion for everyone to rededicate to the values of truth, non-violence, harmony, morality and simplicity. He added that ‘Satya’, ‘Ahimsa’ and ‘Sarvodaya’ formed the bedrock of Gandhi’s numerous messages to humanity.
Mr. Kovind said, by taking up the ‘Swachh Bharat Mission’ as a movement, the people of India have paid homage to the Father of the Nation. He said, nation’s emphasis on inclusive growth, transparency and honesty in public life, health-care support to the poor, support to the farmers and effective utilization of water resources is in keeping with the thoughts of Gandhi Ji.
BJP president Amit Shah will flag off the party’s nationwide “Gandhi Sankalp Yatra” in New Delhi, with party leaders, including Union ministers, scheduled to start the four-month drive from different parts of the country. Mr. Shah will address a meeting in Shalimar Bagh in Delhi before launching the yatra that aims to propagate ideals of the ‘Father of the Nation’, including cleanliness, simplicity, use of Khadi and non-violence.
BJP working president JP Nadda, Union minister Prakash Javadekar and All Delhi BJP MPs and other party leaders will join the ‘Gandhi Sankalp Yatra’ at different points across Delhi.
Union minister for information and broadcasting Prakash Javadekar yesterday released a short tribute film HEY RAM showcasing how the seeds of fearlessness were sown early in Gandhi.
The Congress will celebrate the occasion by organising ‘padayatras’ across the country, with party leader Rahul Gandhi joining the foot march in Delhi that will be led by interim President Sonia Gandhi. The party will observe week-long programmes to mark Gandhi’s birth anniversary.
Over 10,000 students will assemble their own solar lamps and light them together to commemorate the anniversary at the Indira Gandhi Indoor Stadium in Delhi, as part of the Global Student Solar Assembly and an attempt to enter the Guinness Book of world record.
In Gujarat, Several events have been organised in Ahmedabad and in other parts of the state as part of Gandhi’s birth anniversary. People visiting Gujarat to attend the function at Sabarmati riverfront will be taken to different places associated with Mahatma Gandhi.
A spinning session and singing of Bhajans is being organised at Mani Bhavan in Mumbai where Mahatma Gandhi stayed while in the city.
