Dr. Syama Prasad Mookerjee Research Foundation

Salient Points of PM’s address in 2nd Episode of ‘Mann Ki Baat 2.0’

It must be part of your recent memory that in the earlier episode, I had referred to a collection of short stories by Premchand ji, We had decided that on reading any book, some of its facets should be shared with all through the Narendra Modi App.

I have seen that people in large numbers have shared a lot of information on a variety of books. It is heartwarming to see them discuss books published on subjects such as Science, Technology, innovation, history, culture, business, life-sketches and so on. Some have advised me to dwell upon many other books.

Fine. I shall discuss with you on other books as well. But I must candidly admit here that I am not able to devote much time to reading books these days. But I have gained a lot, in the sense that based on your correspondence here, I got opportunities to know about the themes of many kinds of books. But the experience over the last one month makes me feel that we need to take it forward.

Why don’t we create a permanent book corner on the Narendra Modi App, so that, whenever we read a book, we write about it and discuss it on this platform! And you can even suggest an apt name for our book corner. I want this book corner to be an active forum for readers & writers alike.

So keep reading & writing; sharing with all friends of Mann Ki Baat alongside.

Friends, I touched upon the subject of water conservation in Mann Ki Baat and today I feel that it was an issue close to your heart even before I referred to it, a matter of universal human interest.

I have experienced the fact that this topic has stirred the nation’s heart strings collectively. Many an informed, effective endeavour is afoot across the country. People have shared information on traditional methods.

The media has embarked upon quite a few innovative campaigns. Be it the Government or NGOs, something or the other is being carried out on a war footing. Witnessing the might of the collective is in itself heartwarming & satisfying.

A case in point is village Aara Keram under the Ormanjhi block, not very far from Ranchi in Jharkhand. The fervour & Zeal displayed by villagers there towards water conservation has turned out to be exemplary for one & all.

The rural folk donated sweat, toiling collectively, to change the course of a mountain spring. It was a purely indigenous, home grown method.

This has led to not only stopping soil erosion & prevention of crop damage, but also facilitated effective irrigation of fields. And you will be happy to know that the beautiful North Eastern State of Meghalaya has become the first state to have formulated its own water-policy. I congratulate the Government of Meghalaya.

In Haryana, crops that require meagre water are being encouraged. Farmers thus are saved from suffering losses.

I specially congratulate the Haryana Government for establishing a connect with the farmers to wean them away from conventional modes of farming towards crops that do not require much water.

It is the season of festivals. Many fairs are held on these occasions. Why don’t we use these fairs to spread the message of water conservation? All sections of society turn up in fairs in large numbers.

Here, we can effectively spread awareness on the need to save water through forums such as exhibitions and street plays, thus using the festive fervour to convey the message of water conservation with ease.

Friends, certain turns in life make our hearts swell with joy & zest; especially our children’s achievements, their feats fill us up with energy.

And that is why today, I feel like mentioning about a few children.

They are Nidhi Baipotu, Monish Joshi, Devanshi Rawat, Tanush Jain, Harsh Devdharkar, Anant Tiwari, Preeti Nag, Atharva Deshmukh, Aronyatesh Ganguli & Hrithik Alaamandaa.

What I tell you about them will fill your hearts with pride & verve as well. All of us know that just the word CANCER is more than enough to scare the world.

It conjures images of Death waiting at the doorstep. But each of these Ten children, not only fought against the dreaded disease cancer in their battle of life, but also brought glory & laurels to the country.

In sports and games, we often get to see a player becoming a champion after winning a tournament or bagging a medal; this was a rare occasion when the participants were champions BEFORE they entered the contest… they were champions of LIFE, the battle.

Actually, this month, the World Children’s Winners Games were held in Moscow. It is a unique sports tournament meant for young cancer survivors; only they who have emerged fighting cancer, can take part.

In this tournament, sports & games such as shooting, chess, swimming, running, football & table-tennis are organized. All Ten champions of our country won medals in this tournament. Out of these, some players even won more than one medal.

My dear countrymen, I firmly believe that you must have felt immensely proud on India’s achievement beyond the skies… in outer space… Chandrayaan II.

People from across the country, such as Sanjiv Haripura from Jodhpur, Rajasthan, Mahendra Kumar Daga from Kolkata, P. Arvind Rao from Telangana, and many others have written to me on Narendra Modi App and mygov, urging me to speak on Chandrayaan II in Mann Ki Baat.