Development best reply to every form of violence: Modi
Bhilai (Chhattisgarh), June 14 : Development is the only and best answer to every form of violence, Prime Minister Narendra Modi said here on Thursday as he inaugurated several projects for Chhattisgarh worth thousands of crores of rupees.
"The mention of Bastar used to invoke images of guns, bombs and violence. Today, this region is known for Jagdalpur airport. I believe that to every form of violence there is only one reply and it is development," Modi said addressing a gathering after flagging off the first flight between Jagdalpur and Chhattisgarh capital Raipur.
He said in the region where the previous governments did not dare to build even roads, the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) governments of the Centre and the state have built an airport.
Modi said an increasing number of youth from the Bastar region were shunning violence and coming to the mainstream.
"Now, the travel time between Raipur and Jagdalpur will be shortened to just 40 minutes from the earlier 6-7 hours. Thanks to the policies of our government, today more people are flying than those travelling in trains' AC coaches," Modi said.
The Prime Minister said the increased connectivity will attract industry, give a boost to employment and as a result will generate more employment.
Earlier, Modi also dedicated the modernised and expanded Bhilai Steel Plant to the nation and distributed laptops and cheques to beneficiaries.
He said peace, stability and law and order were the prerequisite for development and the BJP government in Chhattisgarh led by Chief Minister Raman Singh had provided that and embarked the state on the path of progress.
The Prime Minister said his government altered the laws to make sure a certain part of the income from the minerals extracted from Chhattisgarh is spent on the welfare of the people including the Adivasis.
Targeting the political rivals, Modi said the previous Congress-led UPA government did not approve the project of an Indian Institute of Technology (IIT) in Bhilai as mooted by the Raman Singh government.
"Today, we have laid the foundation stone of an IIT campus in Bhilai," Modi, who is on a day-long visit to the state, said.
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Jhansi fire: Nurse's heroic efforts helped save over dozen babies
Lucknow/Jhansi (UP), Nov 17: Nurse Megha James was on duty when the fire broke out at the Jhansi hospital and she threw herself headlong into the rescue efforts, playing a hero's role by saving several babies.
Even when her salwar got burned, she refused to give up and was able to evacuate 14-15 babies with others' help.
"I had gone to take a syringe to give an injection to a child. When I came back, I saw that the (oxygen) concentrator had caught fire. I called the ward boy, who came with the fire extinguisher and tried to put it out. But by then, the fire had spread," James said.
Ten babies perished in a fire that broke out at the Neonatal Intensive Care Unit of the Maharani Laxmi Bai Medical College in Jhansi Friday night.
Faced with an enormous blaze, James's mind worked with a frenetic speed, to the extent she cared little about burning herself.
"My chappal caught fire and I burned my foot. Then my salwar caught fire. I removed my salwar and discarded it. At that time, my mind was virtually not working," she told PTI Videos.
James just wore another salwar and went back to the rescue operation.
"There was a lot of smoke, and once the lights went out, we could not see anything. The entire staff brought out at least 14-15 children. There were 11 beds in the ward with 23-24 babies," she said.
Had the lights not gone out they could have saved more children, James said. "It all happened very suddenly. None of us had expected it."
Assistant Nursing Superintendent Nalini Sood praised James's valour and recounted bits from how the rescue operation was carried out.
"The hospital staff broke the glasses of the NICU ward to evacuate the babies. It was then Nurse Megha's salwar caught fire. Instead of caring for her safety, she stayed there to rescue the babies and handed them over to people outside," she said.
Sood said James is currently undergoing treatment at the same medical college. She said she did not know the extent of her burns.
"The rescued babies were shifted to a ward very close to the NICU ward… When I recall the scene, I feel like crying," she said.
Dr Anshul Jain, the head of the anaesthesiology department at the medical college, explained the standard rescue operation and claimed the hospital followed the protocol to the T.
"In the triage process during an ICU evacuation, the policy is to evacuate less-affected patients first. The rationale behind this approach is that patients requiring minimal support can be relocated quickly, enabling a larger number of evacuations to be completed in a shorter time.
"In contrast, patients on ventilators or requiring high oxygen support demand more time and resources for evacuation," he said.
"This principle was successfully implemented in Jhansi, playing a significant role in saving many lives," Jain said.
A newborn rescued from the fire died due to illness on Sunday, Jhansi District Magistrate Avinash Kumar said.
