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PM Modi inaugurates Pravasi Bharatiya Divas in Varanasi

Published By : Admin | January 22, 2019 | 11:02 IST
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The Prime Minister Shri Narendra Modi inaugurated the plenary session of the 15th edition of Pravasi Bharatiya Diwas at Deendayal Hastkala Sankul in Varanasi today.

Chief Guest of PBD 2019, Prime Minister of Mauritius, PravindJugnauth, ,Governor of Uttar Pradesh Ram Naik, External Affairs Minister Sushma Swaraj along with UP Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath, Chief Minister of Haryana, Manohar Lal Khattar, Chief Minister of UttarakhandTrivendra Singh Rawat, Union Minister of State for Overseas Indian Affairs Retd.General V K Singh and several other dignitaries graced the occasion.

In his address, Prime Minister Narendra Modi said it is the love and affection of the diaspora for the land of their forefathers which has brought them to India. He called upon the NRI community to join hands for building a new India.

PM lauded the role of Indian diaspora in keeping alive the tradition of VasudhaivaKutumbakam. He said the NRIs are not only the Brand Ambassadors of India but also represent its strength, capabilities and characteristics. He urged the diaspora to participate in building a New India specially in research and innovation.

PM said that with its rapid progress, India is being seen on a high pedestal across the world and is in a position to lead the global community. International Solar Alliance is one such example. Mr. Modi added that local solution and global application is our mantra. He termed International Solar Alliance as a step in the direction of One World, One Sun, One Grid.

Prime Minister said that India is on course to become a global economic powerhouse. It has one of the largest start-up ecosystems and world's largest healthcare scheme to its credit. We have moved on with great strides in Make in India. A bumper harvest production has been our major achievement.

PM lamented that due to lack of will power and proper policies of the previous Government, a large chunk of funds earmarked for them was not available for the Beneficiaries. However today, he said we have plugged the loopholes in the system with the help of technology. The loot of public money has been stopped and 85 percent of the lost money has been made available and transferred directly into the bank accounts of the beneficiaries. PM said that now Rs. 5,80000 crores has transferred directly into people's accounts over the past four and a half years.PM narrated how 7 crore fake names have been struck off the list of beneficiaries, which is almost equal to the population of Britain, France and, Italy.

PM said these are some of the glimpses of changes ushered in by his Government which reflect the New Confidence of a New India.

PM said the diaspora is equally important in our resolve for a New India. He added that their safety is also our concern and cited how the Government took upon the challenge of evacuating more than 2 lakh Indians stranded in conflict zones.

Speaking about the welfare of Indians overseas, Mr. Modi said passport and visa rules have been simplified and e visa had made it much easier for them to travel. All PravasiBharatiya are now being linked to Passport Sewa and efforts are in to issue chip based E passport.

PM said that a Pravasi Teerth DarshanYojana is being taken up. He urged overseas Indian to invite 5 non Indian families to visit India. PM also requested them to spread the values of Gandhi ji and Guru Nanak Dev ji and become a part of their anniversary celebrations. He said that we feel proud that global community joined us in compilation of Bapu’s favourite bhajan, Vaishnava jan.

PM complimented the role of the residents of Kashi in making PBD successful with their warmth and hospitality. PM said that ahead of upcoming School Board examinations, he will interact with the parents and students through NAMO App in ParikshapeCharcha - at 11am on 29th January, 2019.

Chief Guest of PBD -2019, Mauritius PM, PravindJugnauth invoked the memories of Indian diaspora and their connect with the land of their forefathers. Speaking in Hindi and English, he said such gatherings reinforce the identity of overseas Indians as the members of one family with shared history and culture. He said, if India is unique, Indianness is universal. The Mauritian PM told that an educated and self reliant diaspora can play a major role in nation building and the Diaspora connect can help multilateralism.

He enthralled the crowd with his Bhojpuri dialect and announced that Mauritius will organise the first International Bhojpuri festival.

In her welcome address, External Affairs Minister said India today feels proud under the dynamic leadership of PM Modi. She thanked Indian diaspora for their linkages with the motherland. Chief Minister of Uttar Pradesh, Yogi Adityanath said PBD and Kumbh in Uttar Pradesh are a reflection of Ek Bharat Shreshtha Bharat.

Prime Minister Modi felicitated the winners of Bharat koJaniye quiz competition. This is a quiz competition on India meant for the young Indian diaspora.

Closing ceremony of PBD will be held tomorrow on January 23, 2019 where President RamnathKovind will confer PravasiBharatiyaSamman to select overseas Indians for their contributions.

After the Convention, on 24th January, the visiting diaspora delegates will visit Prayagraj for KumbhMela. They will then proceed to Delhi on 25th January and witness the Republic Day Parade at Rajpath, New Delhi.

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PM chairs CCS Meeting to review measures being taken in the context of ongoing West Asia Conflict
April 01, 2026
Interventions across agriculture, fertilizers, shipping, aviation, logistics and MSMEs to mitigate emerging challenges discussed
Supply diversification for LPG and LNG, fuel duty reduction and power sector measures reviewed to ensure stability of essential supplies
Steps being taken to ensure stable prices of essential commodities and strict action against hoarding and black-marketing
Control Rooms set up for constant monitoring and interaction with States/UTs on prices and enforcement of Essential Commodities Act
Various efforts being taken to ensure fertilizer supply such as maintaining Urea Production and coordination with overseas suppliers for DAP/NPKS supplies
PM assesses availability of critical needs for the common man
PM discusses availability of fertilisers in the country and steps being taken to ensure its availability in the Kharif and Rabi seasons
PM directs that all efforts must be made to safeguard the citizens from the impact of this conflict
PM underlines the need for timely & smooth flow of authentic information to the public to prevent misinformation and rumour mongering
Enough coal stock exists which shall serve power needs adequately in coming months

Prime Minister Shri Narendra Modi chaired a meeting of the Cabinet Committee on Security (CCS) to review measures taken by various Ministries/Departments and also discussed further initiatives to be taken in the context of the ongoing West Asia conflict, at 7 Lok Kalyan Marg today. This was the second special CCS meeting on this issue.

Cabinet Secretary briefed about the action taken to ensure supply of petroleum products, particularly LNG/LPG, and sufficient power availability. Sources are being diversified for procurement of LPG with new inflows from different countries. Similarly, Liquefied Natural Gas (LNG) is being sourced from different countries. He further briefed that LPG prices for domestic consumers have remained the same and Anti-diversion enforcement to curb hoarding and black marketing of LPG is being conducted regularly.

Initiatives have also been taken to expand Piped Natural Gas connections. Measures like exempting the gas-based power plants with a capacity of 7-8 GW from gas pooling mechanism and increasing of rake for positioning more coal at thermal power stations etc. have also been taken to ensure availability of power during the peak summer months.

Further, interventions proposed to be taken for emerging challenges in various other sectors such as agriculture, civil aviation, shipping and logistics were also discussed.

Various efforts like maintaining urea production to meet requirements, coordinating with overseas supplies for DAP/NPKS suppliers are being taken to ensure fertilizer supply. State governments are being requested to curb black marketing, hoarding, and diversion of fertilizers through daily monitoring, raids, and strict action.

The retail prices of food commodities have been stable over the past one month. Control Rooms have been set up for constant monitoring and interaction with States/UTs on prices and enforcement of Essential Commodities Act. The prices of agricultural products , vegetables and fruits are also being monitored.

Efforts to globally diversify our sources for energy, fertilizers and other supply chains, and international initiatives for securing safe passage of vessels through the strait of Hormuz and ongoing diplomatic efforts are being taken.

Enhanced coordination, real-time communication, and proactive measures across central, state, and district levels to drive effective information dissemination and public awareness amid the evolving crisis is being undertaken.

Prime Minister assessed the availability of critical needs for the common man. He discussed availability of fertilisers in the country and steps being taken to ensure its availability in the Kharif and Rabi seasons. He said that all efforts must be made to safeguard the citizens from the impact of this conflict. Prime Minister also emphasised smooth flow of authentic information to the public to prevent misinformation and rumour mongering.

Prime Minister directed all concerned departments to take all possible measures to ameliorate the problems of citizens and sectors affected by the ongoing global situation.