India will ensure equality of citizens, faith, culture: PM

Paris, April 10: Prime Minister rendra Modi on Friday said that the India government will ensure that every citizen, faith, culture and creed has an equal place in society.

“We shall judge our (India’s) progress not just by the cold statistics of growth, but by the warm glow of belief and hope on human faces,” Modi said while addressing a gathering at the Unesco headquarters here.

“For me, it means many things. We will defend and protect the rights and liberty of every citizen. We will ensure that every citizen, of every faith, culture and creed has an equal place in our society; belief in her future; and the confidence to pursue it.”

Modi said that a digital India will create a participative and transparent government.

“Our digital India will create a participative, transparent and a responsive government connected to our citizens,” he said.

To meet its goals, the prime minister said India needed the power of science more than just policies and resources.

“For us,science is driven by the larger purpose of human development; and, for a safe, sustaible, prosperous future for India,” Modi said.

“Science also unites people across borders in a shared purpose.”

Stating that India never forgets the help it has received in its early years, he said that “today, we are fulfilling our responsibility to others”.

“Therefore, science is a key priority of India’s intertiol engagement.”

The prime minister also lauded Unesco’s initiatives to preserve the world’s cultural heritage.

“Unesco’s initiatives to preserve the world’s cultural heritage, including in India, are inspiring,” he said.

“We see India’s rich and diverse cultural heritage as humanity’s wealth. And,we will do everything to preserve it for future generations.”

He also referred to initiatives of his government — Heritage Development and Augmentation Yoja (HRIDAY) to preserve the cultural heritage of Indian cities and Pilgrimage Rejuvetion and Spirituality Augmentation Drive (PRASAD) for rejuvetion of India’s centres of pilgrimage.

Speaking about the challenges faced by the world, he said that “the threats are changing from domition by states to destruction by groups”.

“We fight today not only over what we claim, but also for who we are. And, in many parts of the world, culture remains a source of conflict,” the prime minister said.

Referring to the Ebola disease that has affected western Africa, he said, “Diseases still defeat our most courageous fight, we understand how fragile we are.”

“When we see people living at the edge of existence; children shut out of classrooms; and, tions without the human resources to shoulder the responsibility of progress, we know that we still have a long way to go,” Modi stated.

He called for collective human action to address the pressing global challenge of climate change.

“We have, for example, set a target of adding 175,000 MW of clean and renewable energy in the next seven years,” the prime minister stated.

“Too often, our discussion is reduced to an argument about emission cuts. But, we are more likely to succeed if we offer affordable solutions, not simply impose choices.”

He also referred to the UN last year declaring June 21 Intertiol Yoga Day. IANS