AHMEDABAD: Union Home Minister Amit Shah on Sunday said Prime Minister Narendra Modi wants to make 140 crore people, including the poor, in the country ‘atmanirbhar’ (self-reliant) and has worked with dedication for it. PM Modi wants to make India self-reliant in space technology and defence, and also aims to make the poor people self-reliant, Shah said addressing a gathering of beneficiaries of the PM SVANidhi scheme, which helps street vendors get easy loans.
The Union minister said poor people have benefited the most under the Modi government. Gujarat Chief Minister Bhupendra Patel was also present in the function to give loans to beneficiaries of the Prime Minister Street Vendor’s AtmaNirbhar Nidhi (PM-SVANidhi scheme). Shah is on a day’s visit to his constituency where he is scheduled to attend various events. “In the last nine years, around 3 crore people got their own homes, four crore people got electricity connections, 10 crore people got gas cylinders, 12 crore people got toilets, 80 crore people got free ration, and 60 crore people have been covered under the Rs 5 lakh health insurance (scheme),” Shah said.
Various schemes are being implemented to bring the poor people out of poverty, Shah said. “The vision of a developed India includes not just highways, overbridges, and the Moon landing. Every Indian citizen must get a house, drinking water, electricity, a gas cylinder, besides the poor should get 5 kg of grain. That is the vision of a developed India,” said the Union Home Minister.
“We finished the onerous task of defending 140 crore citizens of the nation against the Covid-19 outbreak by developing our vaccine under the direction of Prime Minister Narendra Modi in trying circumstances. We also sent vaccinations to other nations,” Shah said.
Talking about the success of the PM-SVANidhi scheme, he said: “In my constituency (Gandhinagar in Gujarat), over 1.5 lakh people have availed of the benefit of PM-SVANidhi scheme, under which financial assistance is given to those who are running small businesses and handcarts without any collateral,” he said. In Kalol, Shah said it was Prime Minister Modi who paid “real tributes” to Sardar Vallabhbhai Patel by building the Statue of Unity and a dedicated museum for him. He accused the Congress of ignoring his contribution.
The Statue of Unity, built in honour of Sardar Patel, near the Sardar Sarovar Dam in Gujarat’s Narmada district is the tallest such structure in the world at 182 metres. It was inaugurated by PM Modi in October 2018. Addressing a gathering after inaugurating a statue of Sardar Patel in Kalol, the senior BJP leader said that the Congress party did not even build a memorial for him where he was cremated.
“You would not know the work done by Sardar Patel if you did not travel out of Gujarat. When I was in Gujarat, I used to think that I knew everything about him. But after I went out (of the state) as party functionary, I could comprehend task he carried out,” said Shah.
‘PM-SVANidhi scheme’
Talking about the success of the PM-SVANidhi scheme, Amit Shah pointed out that in his constituency (Gandhinagar in Gujarat), over 1.5 lakh people have availed of the benefit of PM-SVANidhi scheme, under which financial assistance is given to those who are running small businesses and handcarts without any collateral. In Kalol, Shah said it was Prime Minister Modi who paid “real tributes” to Sardar Vallabhbhai Patel by building the Statue of Unity and a dedicated museum for him. He accused the Congress of ignoring his contribution