Viksit Bharat Sankalp Yatra to continue drive beyond February: PM Modi

NEW DELHI: Prime Minister Narendra Modi announced on Thursday that the Viksit Bharat Sankalp Yatra will continue beyond February as the campaign received overwhelming love and support from people across the country. "Due to the love and support for the Viksit Bharat Sankalp Yatra, we have decided to continue this drive beyond February," the Prime Minister said while interacting with beneficiaries of the Viksit Bharat Sankalp Yatra through video conferencing this afternoon.

"We first began this yatra on November 15, seeking the blessings of Bhagwan Birsa Munda. Within just two months, this yatra has become a Jan Andolan (mass movement). Over 15 crore people have participated in the Yatra," the Prime Minister said. PM Modi emphasized that the Viksit Bharat Sankalp Yatra stands as the best example of 'last mile delivery' and stated that his government is aiming to take all its schemes to saturation level through this yatra. He said that over the past nine years, the government has prioritized the underprivileged, aiming to connect every citizen to the mainstream of development. "In the last 9 years, we have endeavoured to give preference to the underprivileged; efforts are being made to connect every citizen who has been away from the mainstream of development till now," he said.

"Our effort is to ensure that people get the benefits of the schemes at their doorstep without any hassle. Developed India Sankalp Yatra is an extension of this thinking," PM Modi said. Referring to the vehicle running for the Yatra as a 'development chariot', PM Modi stated that it has transformed into the Chariot of Trust adding that the goal is to leave no one deprived and include everyone in the benefits of the schemes. "The 'development chariot' running in the Viksit Bharat Sankalp Yatra has changed into the Chariot of Trust, now people are also calling it the Chariot of Guarantee. It is believed that no one will be deprived, no one will be left out of the benefits of the schemes," the Prime Minister said.

The Prime Minister also outlined the key objectives of the Yatra including guaranteeing nutrition and health guarantees to all citizens of the country and ensuring that every family receives a permanent house, along with gas connection, water, electricity, and toilet facilities.

He further said the efforts further include expanding the scope of cleanliness to cover every street, locality, and family and providing every individual with a bank account and opportunities for self-employment. Highlighting the government's decade-long efforts with transparency and honesty, PM Modi noted the significant achievement of providing over 4 crore families with Pucca houses.

Commending it as an example of women's empowerment, the Prime Minister said that over 70 per cent of these houses were registered under a woman's name. "For the past 10 years, our government has made efforts with transparency and complete honesty. The government is relentlessly working for the poor," he said. "Over four crore families got Pucca houses.

More than 70 per cent of these houses have been registered under a woman's name. This is yet another example of how Nari Shakti is getting empowered in Bharat," PM Modi said. Addressing the neglect faced by the transgender community through the years, PM Modi showcased the government's commitment citing laws implemented in his tenure.

"After independence, no one cared about transgenders for so many decades. This is our government, which for the first time was concerned about the difficulties of the transgender community and gave priority to making their lives easier," the Prime Minister said. "In 2019, our government made a law to protect the transgender community. Due to this, the eunuch community got a respectable place in the society and the discrimination against them was reduced," he said.

PM Modi also emphasised the government's role in empowering the self-help groups in the country. "Before 2014, forming self-help groups was limited to just papers or was mostly a medium to gather crowd in the programs of leaders," the Prime Minister said. "It is our government that has linked self-help groups with banks and increased the loan-giving limit from Rs 10 lakh to Rs 20 lakh. During the 10 years of our government, about 10 crore sisters have joined self-help groups," he added.

Viksit Bharat is a nationwide campaign to raise awareness through outreach activities to achieve saturation of schemes of Government of India across the country covering all Gram Panchayats, Nagar Panchayats and Urban Local Bodies.