DEHRADUN/SHIMLA: Prime Minister Narendra Modi in border village of Mana in Uttarakhand today urged pilgrims and tourists from India and across the world to take pledge to spend five per cent of their budget to buy local products produced by the villagers whenever they visit the hills in the Himalayan states.
Prime Minister airdashed to Kedarnath, performed puja and laid foundation stone of the four ropeways and road projects. These are the Gobindghat- Hemkund Sahib ropeway, Gauri Kund-Kedarnath ropeways, the Mana road projects.
Prime Minister said the ropeways would provide a hassle-free access to the Chardham and Hemkund Sahib for the visitors from across the world.
These projects will bring in business and job opportunities to locals that will make their life easier, Prime Minister said.
Addressing public meeting at Mana border village of Uttarakhand Prime Minister said he was delighted to see local products produced by the Self-Help groups of villagers.
Now on, the tourists and pilgrims visiting the mountains are urged to take pledge that they would spend 5% of their budget buying local products, he said. This will serve as souvenir and memories of hill, he said.
Modi said these products will increase income of locals who stand like soldiers defending the borders.
He said the doubled engine government is improving roads and connectivity for their ease of living.
Prime Minister said that he had made a commitment from the ramparts of Red Fort that he would end the mindset of Gulami that had neglected our cultural heritage keeping it in rack and ruins for over 70 years.
Prime Minister said they revamped Kashi Vishwanath and are building Ayodhya Ram Mandir and revamping Chardham and other places protecting and developing our “cultural and spiritual heritage” that each Indian should take pride in.
He said that the double engine government has now taken the task developing culture and spiritual heritage of the country that belong to 130 Crore Indians.
Modi took a dig at political opponents without naming them, saying that they neglected cultural spiritual heritage.
“Now the double engine government is providing the top facilities to people in border areas to make mountains life easier and prosperous for them”.
Due to increased connectivity, Prime Minister said that the record number of tourists visited Chardham this year. There was a time when five lakh tourists used to visit Chhardham, he said.
In contrast now, record 40 lakh tourists visited the Chardham in 2022 season, Modi said.
Modi archives also shared a video on social media of Narendra Modi when he had come to Mana village in 2001 and hold the BJP workers meeting in which he had expressed the same vision for development of Uttarakhand.
Modi said earlier he had gone to Sri Adi Shankaracharya samadhi. “I interact with Shrumjeevis working on the restoration work in Kedarnath, who told him they were not workers but as devotees in the service of Kedarnath.
Modi said Kedarnath and Badrinath are significant to our ethos and tradition.
Prime Minister was accompanied by Governor Lt Gen. Gurmit Singh and Chief Minister Pushkar Singh Dhami.
