Gujarat: Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Friday said he would remain dedicated to serving people until his last breath, as he addressed a public gathering in Gujarat’s Banaskantha and announced the transfer of more than Rs 18,000 crore to nearly 10 crore farmers under the latest PM-KISAN instalment.
The Prime Minister inaugurated and laid the foundation stones for development projects worth over Rs 14,000 crore during his visit, with initiatives aimed at supporting farmers, livestock rearers, women and children.
Crediting citizens for his journey from an ordinary family to leading Gujarat and subsequently the country, PM Modi said their trust had given him the opportunity to serve.
“A person from an ordinary family—a family whose generations had never even dreamt of becoming the head of a village—was deemed worthy by you. You entrusted me with the responsibility of serving, first Gujarat, and then the entire nation,” he said.
“Service to the people leads to service to the nation, and the development of Gujarat contributes to the development of the country. Whatever I have been able to achieve for the nation, the credit belongs to all my fellow countrymen,” he added.
Expressing gratitude, the Prime Minister said, “For this, I will remain indebted to you for the rest of my life. And until the very last moment of my life, I will remain dedicated to serving you.”
PM Modi recalled his first major public gathering as Gujarat Chief Minister in 2001 at Deesa in Banaskantha. He said around three lakh people from the district had attended the Lok Kalyan Mela and that he did not think the record had been broken since.
He described his return to Banaskantha after completing 25 years of public service as a coincidence that brought him back to the region where his journey had begun.
Turning to farmer welfare, the Prime Minister described farmers as among the country’s strongest pillars and said empowering them had remained a government priority.
“Today, another instalment of PM-KISAN has reached the accounts of farmers of the nation. Our farmers, our ‘annadatas’, are one of the strongest pillars of our country. Our government has always prioritised empowering our farmers,” he said.
Under the 24th instalment of PM-KISAN, more than Rs 18,000 crore was transferred to nearly 10 crore farmers, he said. Over 50 lakh farmers in Gujarat received more than Rs 1,000 crore, while nearly Rs 50 crore reached farmer families in Banaskantha.
PM Modi said the agriculture budget had increased more than fivefold compared with 2013–14 and that nearly Rs 4.5 lakh crore had been transferred directly to small farmers under PM-KISAN. He also said government policies had helped farmers receive or save more than Rs 50 lakh crore over the years.
Referring to global uncertainties and continuing tensions in the Gulf, the Prime Minister said the government had shielded farmers from rising fertiliser prices.
“Amid global uncertainties, there was a huge jump in the price of fertilisers, but our government, which is dedicated to the welfare of farmers, did not let the burden of this price rise fall on farmers. The government spent Rs 16 lakh crore on this,” he said.
He accused some people of spreading rumours about shortages of fertilisers and gas to discredit him while the country was dealing with uncertainties arising from tensions in the Gulf.
Highlighting Banaskantha’s agricultural achievements, PM Modi said the region’s potatoes had gained global recognition and praised Banas Dairy for expanding the cooperative movement beyond Gujarat, including in his parliamentary constituency of Varanasi.
“Potatoes from Banaskantha are world-famous today. And no one would dare come to a person from Banaskantha and claim they could turn potatoes into gold—because they are already doing it themselves!” he said.
The Prime Minister said the expansion of the potato processing plant at Sanadar would enable greater procurement and benefit farmers. Other projects include an Automated Storage and Retrieval System for ultra-high-temperature products at Palanpur and two Banas Dairy Bio-CNG plants at Tharad and Radhanpur, with cattle dung processing capacities of 75 metric tonnes and 100 metric tonnes per day, respectively.
He also outlined the Cluster Development Programme for fruit and vegetable growers, under which 12 clusters have been approved for crops including tomatoes, potatoes, chillies, grapes, bananas, onions, oranges, pomegranates and cocoa.
The initiative would support the establishment of new orchards and rejuvenation of existing ones through project subsidies, he said. Two clusters in North Gujarat would benefit potato farmers in Banaskantha and Sabarkantha.
Before his address, PM Modi flagged off the Ahmedabad (Sabarmati)-Varanasi Express and the Mehsana-Becharaji-Sabarmati MEMU services. He also held a roadshow and visited the Bharat Bovine Breeding and Research Centre cattle farm at Bhildi.
The 127-acre facility, dedicated to the Kankrej cattle breed, aims to strengthen bovine breeding, genetic improvement and advanced reproductive technologies. It is expected to accelerate breed improvement by 10–20 times.
During the cattle farm visit, the Prime Minister interacted with women, some of whom raised the slogan “Modi nahi jayenge” during a group photograph. Gujarat Chief Minister Bhupendra Patel and Deputy Chief Minister Harsh Sanghavi were also present.
At the public gathering, PM Modi remarked on the use of traditional charpais for seating, saying Banaskantha had revived village traditions. He suggested that the arrangement could qualify for recognition by Guinness World Records.
During his speech, he also noticed a child holding a framed picture of him and asked Special Protection Group personnel to collect it so the child would not tire.
“You have won over me! Your arms must be hurting,” he said.
[DD news]