Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s fifth Independence Day address on Wednesday, his last speech from the Red Fort before the Lok Sabha polls next year, seemed a primer for his election campaign.

Prime Minister used the occasion of his Red Fort address on 72nd Independence Day to drive home the message that India is making rapid economic development under his stewardship and his Government is taking more initiatives to improve standard of living and the pace of progress of the country.

In his fifth and final Independence Day speech before the 2019 general elections, Modi reeled out various economic achievements and presented an economic report card of the country that had transformed in the last four years to higher trajectory of growth and development.

In doing so, he took a direct dig at the previous UPA regime for its patchy performance on the economic performance front. “In 2013, they used to talk about policy paralysis. Today in 2018, it is ease of doing business.

In 2013, India used to be counted as part of the ‘Fragile Five’ in the world. But today, India is seen as a destination for multi-billion dollar investments," Modi said. Businesses then (in 2013) used to talk about ‘red tape’, but now they talk about red carpet, he added.

There is now no role for middlemen or traditional power brokers in the capital in influencing Governmental decisions, he said. While lauding the contribution of honest taxpayers to nation building, Modi at the same time made it clear that black money hoarders will not be spared and stringent action would be taken against such economic offenders.

Space odyssey

Modi announced the Gaganyaan mission to send an Indian to the space with national flag in hand by 2022 or even earlier. "By 2022, when India completes 75 years of Independence, India will send a son or daughter to the space with the national flag in hand. With this, India will become the fourth nation to send a human to the space”, he said.

'Modicare'

Modi also announced the launch of new programme, Pradhan Mantri Jan Arogya Yojana. This scheme, which will ensure that the poor of the country get access to good quality and affordable healthcare, will be rolled out on September 25, the birth anniversary of Pandit Deen Dayal Upadhyay.

This mission also covers ‘Ayushmann Bharat’ , which would provide Rs 5 lakh health insurance cover to about 10 crore families in the country.

Quotes Bharti

Modi quoted poet Subramaniam Bharti to say that India will show the world the path to freedom from all kinds of shackles.

He said such dreams were shared by countless freedom fighters. And an inclusive Constitution was drafted by Babasaheb Ambedkar to achieve this dream of a nation where there is justice for the poor, and equal opportunities for all to move forward. He said that Indians are now coming together to build the nation. 

He gave examples of the pace of development in various fields such as toilet construction, electricity reaching villages, LPG gas connections, house construction etc. 

Modi said that the Union Government had taken decisions which had been pending for long, including higher MSP for farmers, GST, and One Rank – One Pension. He said this has become possible because the Union Government has kept national interest.

PTI adds:

Continues the tradition

Prime Minister Narendra Modi today continued his tradition of wearing turbans at the Independence Day celebrations and sported a saffron turban during his address at the Red Fort.

Modi had worn an orange and green coloured Jodhpuri bandhej safa for his maiden Independence day speech as Prime Minister in 2014. He continued the tradition by wearing a turban with red and green stripes with a long safa in 2015 while he wore a red-pink-yellow coloured Rajasthani safa in 2016.

Last year, the Prime Minister had chosen an off-white and yellow-red turban with a long trail.

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