Narendra Modi addressed a rally in Mandi in Himachal Pradesh in his first address in the state after becoming the Prime Minister.
Modi reached the state on Tuesday morning and inaugurated three major power projects and then proceeded to address the rally.
Himachal Pradesh will hold Assembly elections in late 2017 and Modi’s visit could have been to garner some support prior to the elections.
Modi apologised to the public for his delayed visit and said ”Aaj chotti Kaashi mei sar jhukaane ka avsar mila hai. Main soch raha thaa aap logh naraaz honge ki maine yaha aane me itna samay liya.” (Today, I got the chance to bow my head down to chhotti Kaashi. I was thinking all of you must be upset that I took so long to come here.)
The BJP leader praised the culture of the state and the amount of Army men it has bred.
He said that there is hardly any family in Himachal that has not sacrificed their sons for the motherland and he salutes each one of them.
Talking on the surgical strikes that has earned him and the BJP government a lot of flak for taking the credit, he said, “Earlier it was done by countries like Israel but Indian troops proved that they are no less.”
Modi added that not just the serving defence personnel, he has equal respect for the retired ones as well. The One Rank One Pension scheme had been pending for a long time and now BJP has actually moved ahead to pass it.
Many governments came with flowery promises, some even passed Rs 200-500 cr budgets, but nothing was done for as long as 40 years.Narendra Modi
PM Modi is supposed to go to Punjab after his Himachal visit.
(WIth inputs from The Financial Express)
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