President, VP, PM pay tributes to Sardar Patel on 145th birth anniversary
President Ram Nath Kovind, Vice President M. Venkaiah Naidu and Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Saturday paid tributes to India’s first Home Minister Sardar Vallabhbhai Patel on his 145th birth anniversary.
The President and officials of Rashtrapati Bhavan paid floral tributes in front of a portrait of Sardar Vallabhbhai Patel.
Earlier on Saturday morning, the President visited Sardar Patel Chowk in New Delhi to pay homage before the statue of Sardar Patel.
The Vice President on the occasion said that Sardar Patel is the leader he admired the most.
In a Facebook post, Naidu recalled the great contributions made by Patel and urged the people, particularly the younger generation, to revisit his legacy and remember his unparalleled contribution to building a modern India.
Naidu praised Patel for his monumental achievement of unifying India.
He mentioned how at a critical juncture, Patel used his sagacity, ingenuity, skill, experience and grit to safeguard India’s territorial unity and integrity.
“Through meticulous planning, negotiations, counselling, and tactful handling, Patel brought together all the princely states in one of the greatest accomplishments in modern history,” Naidu said.
Mentioning the creation of the All India Civil Services, the Vice President said that it was another illustrious contribution made by Sardar Patel.
The Vice President mentioned that Patel earned the reputation of ‘Iron Man’ because of the manner in which he brought about and maintained internal stability as the Home Minister in the wake of the partition of the country.
Prime Minister Modi, who visited Gujarat, paid floral tributes to Patel at the 182-meter tall Statue of Unity there on Saturday.
Sardar Patel’s birth anniversary is being celebrated as ‘Rashtriya Ekta Diwas’ (National Unity Day) since 2014.
Modi, whose two-day Gujarat visit started on Friday, reached the Statue of Unity at Kevadiya in Narmada district in the morning and offered flowers at the feet of the monument of Sardar Patel.
Earlier, Modi took to Twitter to pay homage to Patel, saying “humble tributes to the Iron Man Sardar Vallabhbhai Patel, the pioneer of national unity and integrity, on his birth anniversary”.
Born on October 31, 1875 in Nadiad in Gujarat, Patel breathed his last on December 15, 1950 in Mumbai.
Modi inaugurates seaplane service, boards first flight to Sabarmati
Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Saturday inaugurated the country’s first seaplane service in Gujarat and undertook a journey on its inaugural flight from Sardar Sarovar in Kevadia to the Sabarmati riverfront in Ahmedabad.
The 45-minute seaplane service — launched on the 145th birth anniversary of Sardar Vallabhbhai Patel — connects the Statue of Unity at Kevadia with the Sabarmati riverfront 200 km away. The seaplane service was started by SpiceJet aviation company.
Modi also inaugurated a Water Aerodrome on the Sabarmati Riverfront in Ahmedabad. It is a part of a series of Water Aerodromes planned to bring the last-mile connectivity in the country.
Earlier, during his address on Sardar Patel’s birth anniversary, Modi said: “Today, seaplane service from the Sardar Sarovar to Sabarmati riverfront is also going to be launched. To see the Statue of Unity, the countrymen will now also have the option of seaplane service. All these efforts are going to give a big boost to tourism in this area.”
The seaplanes with their ability to land and take-off from water surface help connect geographies or regions that otherwise are a challenge owing to tough topography and help bring the remotest parts of India into the mainstream aviation network without the high cost incurred on building airports and runways.
These smaller fixed-wing airplanes can land on lakes, and dams, and even gravel and grass, thus offering easy access to numerous tourist spots.
The service will be provided incentives and benefits under the central government’s ‘Udaan’ scheme, which is getting implemented as per a tripartite agreement between the Gujarat government, the Ministry of Civil Aviation, and the Airports Authority of India.
Revival Of India’s Cultural Heritage At Ayodhya Started By Patel: PM
Paying tributes to India’s first Home Minister Sardar Vallabhbhai Patel on his 145th birth anniversary at the ‘Statue of Unity’ in Gujarat, Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Saturday said that the extension of the ‘yagya’ (mission) of reclaiming our cultural heritage at Ayodhya in Uttar Pradesh this year was started by Patel by ordering the reconstruction of the Somnath temple in Gujarat.
After the recent Supreme Court judgement on the existence of the birthplace of Lord Ram at Ayodhya, a grand Ram temple is coming up there.
Modi on Saturday addressed the people from Kevadiya in Gujarat’s Narmada district on the birth anniversary of Sardar Patel, saying, “It is a wonderful coincidence that today Valmiki Jayanti is also celebrated. The cultural unity of India we see today, the India we experience today making it more vibrant and energetic owes to the efforts by Maharishi Valmiki several centuries ago.”
The Prime Minister said leaving behind the past obstacles in the development of Kashmir, the state had now moved on a new path of development after the abrogation of Article 370. Whether it is the restoration of peace in the north-east region as well as numerous steps taken for the development of the region, the country is today setting a new benchmark of unity.
Modi described the ‘Iron Man of India’ Sardar Patel as the pioneer of India’s national unity and integrity and said, “130 crore countrymen are working together to build a strong and competent nation which promotes equality for all and has immense possibilities. Only a self-reliant country can be confident of its progress as well as protect its national security. Therefore, the country now is aimed towards becoming ‘self-sufficient’ in the defence sector as well. India’s approach and attitude towards handling its border areas have also considerably changed.”
