Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Thursday, 12th October laid the foundation stone and dedicated to the nation development projects worth Rs 4,200 crores in sectors including rural development, road, power, irrigation, drinking water, horticulture, education, health and disaster management, among others in Pithoragarh, Uttarakhand today.

Addressing the gathering, the Prime Minister expressed gratitude for the unprecedented love and affection and countless blessings of the people of Uttarakhand on his visit and said, “It was like a Ganga of Affection flowing through”. Shri Modi bowed before the land of spirituality and valour, especially the courageous mothers. He emphasized that the zeal and enthusiasm of the soldiers of Garhwal Rifles soars with the proclamation of Jai Badri Vishal at Baidyanath Dham, and the tolling of the bells at the Kali Mandir at Gangolihat infuse new courage into the soldiers of Kumaon regiment. In Manaskhand, the Prime Minister mentioned Baidyanath, Nandadevi, Poorangiri, Kasardevi, Kainchidham, Katarmal, Nanakmatta, Reetha Sahib and other countless shrines that make for the grandeur and heritage of the land. “I always feel blessed when I am in Uttarakhand amongst you”.

Earlier the PM performed pooja and darshan at Parvati Kund and also met with soldiers, artists and self-help groups and expressed happiness about meeting pillars of security, prosperity and culture. “Our government is working with full dedication and integrity to work for the progress and ease of life of the people of Uttarakhand”, he said. The Prime Minister also reiterated that this decade is going to be the decade of Uttarakhand and recalled his long association and closeness to Uttarakhand and the love he receives from the state.

Talking about the steps to ensure women-led development, the Prime Minister said “Our government is committed to removing every difficulty and every inconvenience of mothers and sisters. That's why our government gave permanent houses to the poor sisters. We built toilets for our sisters and daughters, gave them gas connections, opened bank accounts, arranged for free treatment and free ration. Under the Har Ghar Jal Yojana, sisters of 11 lakh families in Uttarakhand have got the facility of piped water.”

The Prime Minister said that the Vibrant Village scheme has turned the last villages into the first villages of the country. “Our effort is to bring back people who have left these villages. We want to increase tourism in these villages”, said the Prime Minister. He said due to wrong policies of the past relating to water, medicine, roads, education and medical facilities people had to leave their homes. However, he said new facilities and infrastructure are coming up in Uttrakhand in these areas. He said apple farming will benefit from the roads and irrigation facilities and the polyhouse scheme launched today. 1100 crore rupees will be spent on these projects. “So much money is being spent to improve the lives of our small farmers of Uttarakhand. Under PM Kisan Samman Nidhi, farmers of Uttarakhand have so far received more than Rs 2200 crore”, he said. 

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