NEW DELHI: Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Thursday criticised the Indian media for focussing on negative news alone asking to shed its "negativity" and participate in the "irreversible changes" for the betterment of the country.
"Leaders from foreign countries ask me why does the Indian media focus so much on the negative news?" questioned PM Modi.
"Why are we doubting our own potential and achievements? We have such a vibrant history but we deny ourselves the pride. I am quoting President APJ Abdul Kalam, who said that 'if you scholars find it right, then you should discuss it in your seminars'," Modi said.
The Prime Minister's comment came at a leadership summit organised by a media house in the national capital on Thursday.
PM Modi asked the media organisation to extend their help to the government to change the course of the nation for amelioration.
"I request the media organisations to take an oath, where the way they turned Swachh Bharat into a national mission, they will help us (the government) change the course of the nation for the better," PM Modi said.
"No matter what people show on TV, people know that the scheme has brought about an irreversible change in the country", PM Modi said.
"Through Swachh Bharat, the government has not only created toilets but also relieved the pain of millions of daughters. The masses know how far reaching the changes are. I do not know how many people will relate to it but all of you who pay parking fees should know that a poor person, nowadays, gets life insurance for much less," he said.
Modi asserted that had any other achieved much less, it would have hailed itself and run a blitzkrieg of advertisements as the 'messiah of the poor'.
The prime minister also spoke about India's rapid growth in the digital space. He recounted Jan Dhan Yojna, Aadhar-based services, electrifying of villages among many other things.
On Digitisation:
"Connecting the power of mobile and Jan Dhan with the base has built up an arrangement that could not be figured out until a few years ago. Over the past 3 years, millions of bogus names have been removed from the base. Now even against the anonymous property, it's going to become a bigger weapon." says Modi.
On Aadhar:
"By linking Aadhaar to Mobile and Jan Dhan, we have created such a system that could not have been imagined few years back. In last three years, with the help of Aadhaar, crores of fake names have been removed from the system. Now it is going to be a big weapon against benami properties," Modi said.
ऐसे ही एक Irreversible Change को आधार नंबर से मदद मिल रही है। आधार एक ऐसी शक्ति है जिससे ये सरकार गरीबों के अधिकार को सुनिश्चित कराना चाहती है। सस्ता राशन, स्कॉलरशिप, दवाई का खर्च, पेंशन, सरकार की तरफ से मिलने वाली सब्सिडी, गरीबों तक पहुंचाने में आधार की बड़ी भूमिका है: PM
— PMO India (@PMOIndia) November 30, 2017
On Black money
"Post-demonetisation, there has been a shift in the attitude of people which has helped in converting to a clean and healthy economy. Those with black money have a fear of being caught. That which was a part of the parallel economy is now a part of the formal economy," he said.
"On one side, the poor struggled to open one bank account and on the other side, there were companies which opened thousands of bank accounts," he added.
On Insurance claims
"More than 15 crore poor government insurance schemes have been added to the country. Under these schemes, the poor have been given a claim amount of about Rs 1800 crore," Modi said.
देश के 15 करोड़ से ज्यादा गरीब सरकार की बीमा योजनाओं से जुड़ चुके हैं। इन योजनाओं के तहत गरीबों को लगभग 1800 करोड़ रुपए की claim राशि दी जा चुकी है। इतने रुपए किसी और सरकार ने दिए होते तो उसे मसीहा बनाकर प्रस्तुत कर दिया गया होता. ये भी एक सच है जिसे मैं स्वीकार करके चलता हूं
:PM— PMO India (@PMOIndia) November 30, 2017
The Prime Minister also said that he is ready to pay the political price for the steps taken by him for a better India and asserted he would not be deterred.
"I know through all these steps I've taken, the path I've started walking on, there is a political price I will have to pay, but I'm ready to pay it," he said.
जिस दिन देश में ज्यादातर खरीद-फरोख्त, पैसे के लेन-देन का एक Technical और Digital Address होने लग गया, उस दिन से Organised Corruption काफी हद तक थम जाएगा। मुझे पता है, इसकी मुझे राजनीतिक तौर पर कितनी बड़ी कीमत चुकानी पड़ेगी, लेकिन उसके लिए भी मैं तैयार हूं: PM @narendramodi
— PMO India (@PMOIndia) November 30, 2017
