Good governance is our birthright, says Modi as he remembers Tilak
New Delhi, July 29 : Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Sunday said that "Suraaj" (good governance), like "Swaraj" (self rule), is the "birthright" of every Indian and they should have it.
Remembering freedom fighter Bal Gangadhar Tilak -- who was born on July 23, 1856 and died on August 1, 1920 -- Modi said: "Lokmanya Tilak evoked self-confidence amongst our countrymen and gave the slogan ‘Swaraj is our birth right and I shall have it'. Today is the time to say that good governance is our birth right and we will have it."
"Every Indian should have access to good governance and positive results of development. It is the factoring in of this outreach that will create a new India," he said in his monthly radio show "Mann Ki Baat".
During his election campaign in 2014, Modi had frequently promised the people that he would ensure "good governance."
The Prime Minister also remembered revolutionary freedom fighters Chandra Shekhar Azad, Ashfaqullah Khan and Bhagat Singh. Azad was born on July 23, 1906.
"After 50 years of Tilak's birth, on the same day, that is, July 23, another son of Mother India was born who sacrificed his life so that his countrymen could breathe freely in an atmosphere of freedom. I am talking about none other than Chandra Shekhar Azad," Modi said.
He said couplets like Sarfaroshi ki tamanna ab hamare dil mein hai/ Dekhna hai zor kitna baazu-e-qaatil mein hai (The desire to lay down our lives is burning in our hearts/ Let's see the strength of our executioner's arms) inspired the youth like Azad, Ashfaqullah Khan, Bhagat Singh and many others did.
"Azad's courage and passion for freedom inspired the youth of the day. He put his life at stake, but never bowed in front of the foreign rule," Modi said.
Azad famously shot himself with the last bullet in his pistol during an encounter with the police on February 27, 1931 at a park in Allahabad, to keep his vow to never surrender to the British.
"Once again, I bow and pay tributes to the two great sons of Bharat Mata - Lokmanya Tilak and Chandra Shekhar Azad," Modi said.
Let the Truth be known. If you read VB and like VB, please be a VB Supporter and Help us deliver the Truth to one and all.
MP boat tragedy: Death toll climbs to 13; body of last missing person recovered
Jabalpur (PTI): The bodies of a five-year-old boy and his uncle were recovered from Bargi Dam in Madhya Pradesh's Jabalpur district on Sunday morning, raising the death toll in the cruise boat tragedy to 13, police said.
The boat, around 20 years old and operated by the state tourism department, capsized during a storm on Thursday evening.
"The bodies of Mayuram (5) and his uncle Kamraj (around 50), an employee of the Ordnance Factory in Khamaria, were found floating and were fished out of the dam," Bargi Sub Divisional Officer of Police Anjul Ayank Mishra told PTI over the phone.
ALSO READ: Passenger held after opening emergency exit on taxiing flight at Chennai airport
All 13 missing persons identified have now been accounted for, he said, adding the bodies were sent to a government hospital for postmortem.
Teams comprising around 20 Army divers airlifted from Agra, along with personnel from the National Disaster Response Force, State Disaster Response Force and local divers, were involved in the search operation, the police said.
Of the 41 identified passengers on board the vessel, 28 were rescued after the incident, according to the police.
The CCTV footage near the boarding point showed 43 people heading towards the boat, though the identities of 41 passengers have been confirmed so far, they said.
The state government on Friday ordered a probe into the incident and dismissed three crew members. It also banned the operation of similar vessels in the state.
