Besides an obvious reference to the Congress for its “dynastic politics” earlier in the day, Prime Minister Narendra Modi made a strong case against developed countries impeding the progress of developing countries like India. During his address at a function in Vigyan Bhawan to mark Constitution Day on Friday, he spoke at length about India’s colonial past, and how the existing colonial mindset was a “hurdle cropping up” in the development journey of developing nations.
Giving the latest example of the United Nations Climate Change Conference, COP26 summit, held in Glasgow recently, Prime Minister Modi said the issue of environment was also being “hijacked” by developed nations. Modi said, “Developed nations have caused 15% more emissions than India since 1850 to date.”
Here are some top quotes from PM Modi’s speech at a Constitution Day event in Vigyan Bhawan:
ON DEVELOPED COUNTRIES CREATING HURDLES: Attempts are made to shut the path and resources for developing nations through which developed nations reached where they are today. In past decades, a web of different terminologies was spun for this. But the aim has always been one — to stop the progress of developing nations.
ON COLONIAL MINDSET: Today, no nation directly exists as a colony to any other nation. But it doesn’t mean that colonial mindset has ended. This mindset is giving rise to many distortions. We can see a clear example of this in the hurdles cropping up in development journey of developing nations. It’s unfortunate that obstacles are created in development of our nation, sometimes in the name of freedom of expression and sometimes through other means. It’s attempted to judge our nation on parameters of other nations, without knowing our situation or aspirations of our youth.
ON THE ISSUE OF ENVIRONMENT: The issue of environment is also being attempted to be hijacked for this purpose. We saw an example of this in the recent COP26 Summit. If we talk of absolute cumulative emissions, developed nations have caused 15% more emissions than India since 1850 to date. Still, India is lectured on environmental conservation. India has lived with nature embedded in its tradition, where God is seen even in plants, where the land is worshipped as the mother. For us, these values are not just confined to books.
ON DRAFTERS OF THE CONSTITUTION: Our Constitution drafters gave us the Constitution in the light of the dreams seen by the people who lived and died for the independence and by cherishing the thousands of years long great traditions of India. Hundreds of years of dependence pushed India into several problems. The India that was once called a golden bird was suffering from poverty, starvation and diseases. In that background, the Constitution always helped us in taking forward the nation.
ON POST-INDEPENDENT INDIA: If we compare to other countries, then the nations that became independent around the same time as India, are way ahead of us today. It means, that a lot of things still need to be done. We have to reach the goal together. It’s a reality that even after decades post-independence, a large section of people in the country had to suffer exclusion; crores of those people who didn’t even have a toilet at their house, who were living in the dark in the absence of electricity, who were without water.
ON TURNING EXCLUSION INTO INCLUSION: Investing oneself in understanding problems, pain to make lives easier — I consider this the real honour of the Constitution. I’m satisfied that in line with this sentiment of the Constitution, a vigorous drive is going on to convert exclusion into inclusion. Attempts are made to close the path to development. People who do this don’t have to bear its brunt. It has to be borne by that mother whose child can’t study in the absence of a power plant, by that father who can’t take his child on time to hospital in the absence of a road.
The Congress and several other opposition parties decided to boycott the celebrations a day ago. “The BJP is continuously attacking constitutional rights. We want to clarify that if opposition or its leaders are invited, then they should not only invite us to just sit and listen,” said Congress leader Anand Sharma.
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