India undergoing historic change under leadership of PM Modi: Lekhi in Melbourne

India has had economists as prime ministers, but it was only Narendra Modi who enrolled the poor of India into the formal economy.

India has been undergoing a historic change under the leadership of Modi, who has tried to touch the lives of the common man, said Union minister Meenakshi Lekhi said on Sunday.

Lekhi was speaking at ‘Vishwa Sadbhavana’ event organised by the NID Foundation in Melbourne where she unveiled two books ‘Heartfelt-The Legacy Of Faith’, which documents Modi’s belief in the Sikh Gurus and their teachings and ‘Modi@20: Dreams Meet Delivery’ – a compilation of chapters by intellectual and domain experts.

“Every once in a while India needs change and if you analyse history, you will know that someone great comes along and brings the needed change. After Maharaja Ranjit Singh and Maratha Queen Ahilya Bai Holkar, if someone is capable of bringing that massive change, it is our Prime Minister Narendra Modi, and he is proving that right,” said Smt Lekhi, who was the chief guest on the occasion.

“India has been undergoing a historic change under the leadership of Prime Minister Narendra Modi, who has tried to touch the life of common man through various policies and schemes launched during the last 8 years in office,” the minister of state for external affairs and culture said.

“Unlike previous governments, it didn’t take him 70 years to figure out that the common citizen of this country required toilets. As many as 20 crore toilets were constructed in a record time.

India has had economists as prime ministers, but it was only Narendra Modi who enrolled the poor of this country into the formal economy, opening 38 crore bank accounts within four months as compared to 12 crore opened in the last 70 years. This not only ensured the common man’s inclusive participation in nation building but also ensured direct bank transfers, thus eliminating corruption,” she added at the event.

Organised for the first time in Australia, the Vishwa Sadbhavana was the latest in the series of such events held by the NID Foundation and picks up from the legacy of the last event held in Chicago in June.

Eminent personalities from Australia and the Indian diaspora, including entrepreneurs, members of the Australian Parliament and Senate, corporate leaders, educationists and spiritual leaders, were present on the occasion.

Manpreet Vohra, Indian high commissioner to Australia, said not only the Indian diaspora in Australia has grown in numbers, but the peer-to-peer relationship between the two communities has also grown stronger than ever.

“Indian diaspora here has risen to achieve great success despite coming from humble backgrounds. Their contribution to Australia, socially, economically or even culturally is greatly acknowledged, and has contributed significantly in taking India-Australia relationships to a new level,” he said.

Julian Hill, a member of the Australian Parliament, said the two books launched were significant as they not only highlight and celebrate Modi’s life, but also India and all of its people.

Recalling his time spent in Gujarat, Hill said, “India is the world’s biggest multi-cultural and multi-faith democracy. This is a great incident that today’s event coincides with the 75th Independence Day celebration of India. In the 75 years, India has truly shown what they are capable of and the entire world acknowledges that.”