Some people alarmed when they hear 'Om', 'cow', says PM Modi
Opposition hits back Modi for the remark, asking him to talk about economy
Mathura (UP)/New Delhi, Sep 11: Prime Minister Narendra Modi Wednesday hit out at critics who argue that the mention of words 'Om' and 'cow' takes India centuries back, saying they are hell-bent on damaging the country.
The Opposition slammed Modi for the remark, asking him to talk about the economy instead and get alarmed when people are killed in the name of the cow.
Modi took a jibe at unnamed critics as he launched a nationwide programme in Mathura to save livestock from the foot and mouth disease, delivering 600 million vaccine shots to farm animals over the next several years.
Beginning with Radhey, Radhey, a customary greeting in the Brajbhoomi' around Mathura, Modi promoted cleanliness, spoke against single-use plastic and invoked the 9/11 attack on America this day 18 years ago to indirectly condemn Pakistan for nurturing terrorism.
"There is a country called Rwanda in Africa. I had gone there. In Rwanda, there is a unique programme, where the government gives cows to villages with the condition that the first female calf born to the cow is taken back and given to those who do not have a cow," he said.
"This way a chain operates. And their endeavour is that in Rwanda every household should have a cow, milk production and animal rearing, which forms the base of the economy. I have myself seen how a network to earn livelihood through a cow has been established there," Modi said.
"But it is unfortunate that in our country the moment the word 'Om' falls on the ears of some people, they get alarmed ('baal khadhe ho jaate hai')," he said, without naming anyone.
"They also get alarmed by the word 'cow'. They feel as if that the country has gone back to the 16th or the 17th century, he said.
Mocking this gyan (wisdom) of the critics, he said such people are hell-bent on damaging the country.
He wondered whether anyone can imagine an economy without animal husbandry.
"In the life of rural India, animal husbandry is very valuable. Can a family in a village survive without it? But I don't know why some people get an electric shock on hearing the word," Modi said. In Delhi, the Congress said the remarks were any attempt to "divert and digress" from the state of the economy. CPI general secretary D Raja agreed.
"He is saying this at a time when in the name of cow and God, mob lynchings are happening unabated across the country, Raja told PTI.
AIMIM chief Assaduddin Owaisi said people do not just hear 'Om' and 'cow' in India but also the call for prayer from mosques, voices from gurdwaras and bells from churches.
Nationalist Congress Party MP Majeed Memon said Modi is the prime minister of a secular country and he should not refer to religious matters too often.
"He is not a dharma guru, Memon said.
Earlier, Modi said environment and livestock were always at the core of India's economic thought and philosophy.
And hence, be it Swachh Bharat or Jal Jeevan Mission or promoting agriculture and animal husbandry, we always try to maintain a balance between nature and economy."
In his 40-minute speech, the prime minister also brought up the terror attack on America this day in 2001.
"Today terrorism has become an ideology which has transgressed every border. It is a global problem and has become a global threat whose strong roots are getting nourished in our neighbourhood," he said in an apparent reference to Pakistan.
He said the entire world needs to take a pledge against this ideology, against those who are taking it forward and those giving shelter and training to terrorists.
"There is need for strong action," he said. "India is fully competent to face the challenge. We have shown this and will also show it in future."
Modi said his government's effort to strengthen anti-terror laws is a step forward in this direction.
September 11 is also a special day for another reason, as it was on this day a century back when Swami Vivekananda delivered his historic address in Chicago, he said.
"Through that speech, the entire world thoroughly understood the culture and tradition of India. But it is unfortunate that on that very September 11, the 9/11 terrorist attack took place in the US, and it shook the entire world."
Modi launched the National Animal Disease Control Programme (NACDP) to control foot and mouth disease (FMD) and bacterial infection brucellosis in livestock. The Centre will spend Rs 12,652 crore to vaccinate over 600 million animals in a programme stretching up to 2030.
He also inaugurated the National Artificial Insemination Programme.
Asking people to shun single-use plastic, Modi said its wanton use posed a hazard to the environment and led to livestock and fish being killed.
Before the address, Modi joined a group of women in segregating plastic from waste at a 'Swachhta Hi Seva' programme.
He sat with a group of women workers, symbolically helping them sift waste to drive home the message against plastic.
Modi said following Mahatma Gandhi's preaching on saving the environment, people should make their homes and offices free of single-use plastic by October 2.
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Charred body of teen found after fire destroys over 100 shanties in Delhi's Rithala
New Delhi (PTI): A massive fire swept through a cluster of shanties in Delhi's Rithala area early on Thursday, killing a 17-year-old girl and destroying more than 100 huts that left dozens of migrant families homeless.
Firefighters pulled out the charred body of the girl who was initially reported missing after the fire.
The blaze that was reported to authorities at 4.15 am spread rapidly through the densely packed shanties, triggering panic among residents who rushed out of their huts to escape the flames.
Residents said the shanty cluster was home to migrant labourers from Bihar, Uttar Pradesh and West Bengal and other states who worked as daily wage workers in nearby factories, construction sites and small establishments.
The Delhi Fire Services (DFS) launched a large-scale firefighting operation and deployed more than 18 fire tenders to control the blaze.
After the fire was brought under control, firefighters recovered the charred body of a teenage girl from the debris.
"Teams reached the location soon after the call was received and began firefighting operations. The fire had already engulfed several shanties in the cluster," a fire official said.
Officials said the blaze spread quickly because the huts were built very close to each other and many contained highly inflammable materials such as plastic sheets, wooden planks and cloth.
Firefighters and local police personnel carried out rescue and cooling operations and managed to bring the fire under control by around 6.30 am.
"The fire had spread to more than 100 huts and a adjacent godown of paper rolls and cardboard and the doors and windows of some residential flats also caught fire. A 17-year-old girl charred body was also recovered. Her body was sent to BSA Hospital by PCR," the officer said.
Police said the girl has been identified and further legal procedures are underway.
Many families said they lost everything in the fire as they had to flee with no belongings during the fire.
"We ran out to save our lives when the fire started. Within minutes everything was burning. Our hut, clothes, money and documents -- everything has turned to ashes," said Ramesh Kumar, a labourer from Bihar who has been living in the area.
Another person from West Bengal, said the flames spread so quickly that people barely had time to wake their children and escape.
"We woke up to screams and saw fire everywhere. We somehow managed to take the children outside. We could not save anything from the hut. All our belongings are gone," she said.
Some residents were seen searching through the burnt remains of their huts in the hope of finding salvageable items. "We worked for years to build this small hut and collect household items. In just a few minutes, everything we had earned was destroyed," said a migrant worker from Uttar Pradesh.
Police said the exact cause of the fire is yet to be ascertained and an investigation is underway.
