Gandhi Jayanti 2019: PM Modi, in his NYT piece, says Gandhi offers solutions to every problem.
Highlights
- PM has written an opinion piece in The New York Times on Mahatma Gandhi
- In his piece, PM says Mahatma Gandhi offers solutions to every problem.
- PM's NYT piece is titled "Why India and the World Need Gandhi"
Mahatma Gandhi "envisioned Indian nationalism as one that was never narrow or exclusive but one that worked for the service of humanity", Prime Minister Narendra Modi wrote in an opinion piece in The New York Times on the occasion of Gandhi's 150th birth anniversary.
Quoting Albert Einstein, PM Modi proposed the "Einstein Challenge" to ensure that ideals of the Mahatma are remembered by future generations.
"As a tribute to Gandhi, I propose what I call the Einstein Challenge... How do we ensure the ideals of Gandhi are remembered by future generations? I invite thinkers, entrepreneurs and tech leaders to be at the forefront of spreading Gandhi's ideas through innovation," PM Modi wrote in the 931-word piece titled "Why India and the World Need Gandhi".
Referring to Mahatma Gandhi's Dandi March, PM Modi writes, "Who else could have created a mass agitation through a pinch of salt."
PM Modi, in his article, says Gandhi had the unique ability to become a bridge between some of the greatest contradictions in human society.
"Who else could have created a mass agitation through a pinch of salt," the Prime Minister writes, referring to the Dandi March in 1930.
PM Modi says Gandhi offers solutions to every problem. "In Gandhi, we have the best teacher to guide us," he writes.
He also highlighted the government's big cleanliness initiative this Gandhi Jayanti.
The piece ends with a call to the world to work shoulder to shoulder to end hate, violence and suffering. "That is when we will fulfill Mahatma Gandhi''s dream, summed up in his favourite hymn, ''Vaishnava Jana To'', which says that a true human is one who feels the pain of others, removes misery and is never arrogant. The world bows to you, beloved Bapu!" PM Modi writes.
Numerous events have been planned in India and abroad to celebrate the 150th birth anniversary of Mahatma Gandhi.
President Ram Nath Kovind, Vice President M Venkaiah Naidu, PM Modi and politicians cutting across parties paid homage to Mahatma Gandhi this morning.
PM Modi, who launched the 'Swachh Bharat' cleanliness campaign in 2014, will declare the country open defecation-free at the Sabarmati Ashram in Gujarat, where Gandhi based himself for many years.