പ്രിയപ്പെട്ട മുഖ്യമന്ത്രി ശ്രീ പിണറായി വിജയൻ,
വിശിഷ്ട വ്യക്തികളേ,
പ്രിയപ്പെട്ട സഹോദരീ സഹോദരന്മാരേ,
ലോകമെമ്പാടുമുള്ള കേരളീയര്ക്ക് എന്റെ ഹാര്ദമായ റിപ്പബ്ലിക് ദിന ആശംസകള്.
Let me at the outset, convey my heartiest Republic Day Greetings to everyone present here and to Keralites all over the world.
A pageantry of glorious accomplishments strides through our minds, as our beloved nation celebrates its 74th Republic Day, savoring its pride of place as the largest and more vibrant democracy in the world.
Today, we proudly commemorate that golden moment on the 26th of 1950, when Independent India embraced a Constitution that firmly upheld the right of universal adult suffrage and encapsulated the political, social and economic rights of the people.
Our Constitution bestowed on us, the jana-gana of India, the sovereign authority to govern our nation, emphasizing the supremacy of the citizen in a democracy. The Republic Day is an occasion to gratefully extol the collective wisdom that shaped the spirit and content of our Constitution.
Our political democracy has accrued indomitable strength during the last over seven decades as it derived energy from the millennia old spiritual and cultural democracy that we have inherited from ancient India.
Through a befitting celebration of Azadi Ka Amrit Mahotsav, marking 75 years of our Independence, we are now into the Amrit Kaal, which is our developmental pathway towards the Vikasit Bharat of the year 2047, the eagerly awaited Centenary of our Independence.
In this moment of pride, our heads bow in reverence to the memory of thousands of known and unknown patriots whose tireless struggles, hard work and selfless sacrifice resulted in the freedom and dignity that we enjoy today.
Our unwavering resolve to preserve our freedom and our progress towards prosperity would be the best expression of our respect to those patriots.
Our motherland which is home to almost one-sixth of humanity, stands tall as a microcosm of the world, embellished by its immense diversity and at the same time, firmly united by a sense of Indian-ness that permeates every mind and moment of life.
It is this perennial and ever renewing sense of oneness that reflects in the message of “One Earth, One Family, One Future,” that our Hon’ble Prime Minister Shri Narendra Modi-Jihas proclaimed on assuming the chairmanship of G-20 nations.
Instead of ‘fight for survival’, India now guides the world with the mantra of ‘act in unison’ in tackling global issues like climate change, terrorism, and pandemics.
As a nation, our diligence and tenacity have paid rich dividends, which are visible through a plethora of accomplishments proclaiming our robustness and philosophy of life and enhancing our prestige in the comity of nations.
Our odyssey since Independence has been guided by modern ideas of governance, an unrelenting urge to ensure justice, equality and dignity to all and the firm resolve to defend our national unity and territorial integrity.
It was this acuity and the spirit of Atmanirbharta,
self-reliance, that enabled India to confidently tide over the Covid-19 pandemic by ramping up health infrastructure, producing medicines and vaccines and making them accessible and available to 220 crore people.
The economic reforms of the Union Government led by Hon’ble Prime Minister Shri Narendra Modi-Ji and guided by the spirit of Atmanirbharta helped India emerge as the world's fifth largest economy last year. Today, 40 percent of the world's U.P.I transactions are happening in India alone.
Our pride in having one of the largest and the best armed forces in the world hasbeen invigorated by our success in the indigenous building and induction of the aircraft carrier INS Vikrant, the Prachanda Light Combat Helicopter for the Air Force and modern armaments and arsenal for the Army.
While boosting our defense capabilities and surging as one of the top 25 exporters of defense equipment, India stands firmly against global terrorism by declaring: ‘No Money For Terror’.
Opening up of the Space sector to the private sphere had encouraging results. As ‘Vikram–S’, the sounding rocket developed by Indian start up Skyroot Aerospace took off, we saw our youths proclaiming that the sky was no longer the limit.
Indian Space Research Organization, which provided this encouragement, had also carried out many missions including PSLV-C-54, GSAT- 24 and GSLV-MK-3 One Web.
All our endeavors towards building a New India draw momentum from the pace of progress and development in our States and Union territories.
In Kerala, our State Government led by Chief Minister Shri Pinarayi Vijayan has been working on the vision of a Navakeralam by addressing key areas like Agriculture and Environment, Housing, Health care and Education.
The completion of over 3.2 lakh houses under the Livelihood Inclusion and Financial Empowerment [LIFE] Scheme has added strength to India’s dream of providing houses to over one crore beneficiaries, through the Pradhan Mantri Awas Yojana [PMAY] and related schemes.
Kerala has drawn inspiration from India’s rise as the third largest Start up ecosystem in the world and the Kerala Start Up Mission has been recognized in the Global Start Up Ecosystem Report-2022 as Asia’s leading performer.
The NITI Aayog Baseline Report about Kerala recording the lowest multidimensional poverty in the country, the third position in terms of employability of the youth as per India Skills Report 2022 and the appreciation received for Innovation Index and social security measures acknowledge the good performance of the State.
Well in tune with the national goals on Health, Kerala’s Aardram Mission has been re-engineering healthcare facilities from sub-centres to Medical colleges and ensuring patient access to quality healthcare services. More hospitals securing the National Quality Assurance Standard certification bears testimony to our efforts.
Kerala’s ‘Year of Enterprises’ scheme resulting in the establishment of 1.23 lakh Micro, Small and Medium Enterprises (MSMEs), an investment of Rs.7517 crore and an employment generation of 2.67 lakh have supplemented our national endeavors to promote the manufacturing sector.
Kerala’s top position in the latest Performance Grading Index (PGI) of the Union Ministry of Education, the progress in the attainment of Sustainable Development Goals and the effective management of decentralized planning have been widely appreciated.
This decade of India's projected demographic dividend calls for progressive qualitative transformation in Higher Education so as to limit the flow of our students to other States and countries. Given Kerala’s high intellectual and technological potential, it is achievable through dedicated, focused efforts.
The completion of cent percent seeding of Adhaar cards, training for the youth of Scheduled Castes and Tribes, the provision of over 15 lakh rural household tap connections under Jal Jeevan Mission, and promotion of Responsible Tourism to felicitate local economic development are some of our notable strides towards progress.
The recently announced National Green Hydrogen Mission and India’s rise as the third largest producer of renewable energy have boosted Kerala’s hopes about a boom in e-Mobility in the coming years. We also hope to benefit from the improvements in road infrastructure and rail projects like Swadeshi Vande Bharat Trains.
Coming to agriculture, what emerges from our wheat fields is the scent of self reliance, as India becomes the second largest producer of wheat and the world’s food basket, with a 42 percent increase in the export of processed fruits and vegetables.
In the context of agricultural reforms, Kerala’s Krishi Darshan, Millet Village, and other steps to ensure food security, higher income for farmers, and more jobs in the farm sector attain greater relevance.
The efforts for delivery of services through the Integrated Local Self-Governance Management System (ILGMS) in our Grama Panchayats which are empowering our villages in many ways, also deserve applause.
It was Gandhiji who observed that the soul of India lives in its villages. Today, considering the national and state level initiatives in rural development and agriculture, we could see the future of India in our villages.
It will be through developed and self reliant villages and plenteous granaries that we would realize the dreams of our Amrit Kaal. Such a developed and affluent India was foreseen by the famous poet, the Late P. Kunjiraman Nair who wrote:
പാരിതിന് പൂങ്കാവ്, ഭാരതം !
നാളത്തെ ഭാരതം !
ഉര്വിക്ക് പുത്തൻവെളിച്ചമരുളുന്ന
ഭാരതം –സുസ്നേഹഭാരതം,
ഗ്രാമീണഭാരതം, സമ്പന്ന കര്ഷകഭാരതം.
To strive towards the creation of such an all prosperous India is the mission of every Indian during the Amrit Kaal.
It would be an expression of our gratitude for belonging to a nation, rich in heritage, richer in opportunities and undoubtedly richest in the Constitutional promise of a life of justice, equality, liberty, fraternity and above all, dignity to all its citizens.
Let us perform our duties, mindful of the welfare of our fellow-beings and with unwavering loyalty towards the nation so that India’s Republican ideals, like its age-old philosophical insights continue to radiate the light of strength, unity and hope to the entire world.
എല്ലാവര്ക്കും ഒരിക്കല്കൂടി
എന്റെ റിപ്പബ്ലിക് ദിന ആശംസകൾ.
ലോകാഃ സമസ്താഃ സുഖിനോ ഭവന്തു
നന്ദി
ജയ് ഹിന്ദ്.
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