In his home state of Gujarat, Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Saturday invoked Mahatma Gandhi and former PM Atal Bihari Vajpayee in two back-to-back events at a single venue, the Sabarmati Riverfront, in Ahmedabad.
He attended a ‘Khadi Utsav’ and tried his hands at the spinning wheel at a unique event where 7,500 women artisans from across Gujarat spun Gandhi charkhas together.
Speaking on the occasion with thousands of charkhas whirring together at the scenic Sabarmati Riverfront, Modi said khadi was not only a symbol of self-reliance but a force in itself during the Independence struggle that "broke the chains of slavery." He was accompanied by Gujarat Chief Minister Bhupendra Patel.
The Prime Minister said the 7,500 women had created history on the occasion of ‘Azadi ka Amrit Mahotsav’. On the occasion of 75 years of independence, 7,500 sisters and daughters created history by spinning yarn on charkha. "Spinning charkha took me back to my childhood days," he claimed.
Addressing the gathering at the riverfront, Modi lamented that, "Khadi, which was made the symbol of the country’s self-respect by Gandhiji during the freedom movement, generated sentiments of inferiority in post-Independence India. It is because of such an attitude that khadi and ancillary rural industries related to it were ruined. A live demonstration of the production of Ponduru khadi was also held at the event.
The Khadi Utsav also features an exhibition on the "Evolution of Charkhas" by displaying 22 spinning wheels used since 1920. The exhibition will feature the ‘Yerwada charkha’ used during the freedom struggle besides various spinning wheels with the latest innovations and technology being used now.
Earlier, the Prime Minister inaugurated the aesthetically designed Atal Bridge, a 300-meter foot overbridge across the Sabarmati Riverfront, which connects one bank to the other towards the walled city of Ahmedabad.
In the evening, Modi, who called on his 100-year-old mother Hiraba in the morning, will on Sunday inaugurate "Smriti Van" in Bhuj to commemorate the spirit of resilience shown by people after the devastating 2001 earthquake in Kutch district, whose impact was felt across Gujarat. He will also lay the foundation stone and inaugurate various developmental projects at Bhuj. The Prime Minister will address an event Gandhinagar, commemorating 40 years of Suzuki in India.
