Asserting that India has attained new milestones in 'gram swaraj' and democratic empowerment of panchayats in the last eight years, Prime Minister Narendra Modi has urged sarpanches to make efforts for saturation coverage of welfare schemes, conserving water and making the upcoming Yoga Day special.

Modi asked them to work to make the eighth International Yoga Day, which falls on July 21, special and to encourage everyone in their village to join the exercise. “They can select an ancient or tourist place or a place near a water body in their area for everyone in the village to do yoga on the day,” he said, urging them to share pictures to inspire others.

Noting that "Yoga for humanity" is the theme of the upcoming Yoga Day, he said the Covid-19 pandemic has made people realise the importance of health in life and the role of yoga.

Emphasising the need for conserving every drop of water, Modi asked village heads to continue making collective efforts in villages in this regard while pitching for rainwater harvesting measures.

Welfare schemes

Stressing the need for saturation coverage of welfare measures to help every eligible beneficiary, he told sarpanches that they play a big role in this and asked them to speed up their efforts to ensure that no one is left out from the benefits of government schemes.

Modi also asked them to continue with the efforts for 'Swachh Bharat' (clean India) with all seriousness.

On the issue of 'gram swaraj' (village self-rule) and 'garib kalyan' (poor's welfare), he said, "New milestones have been achieved towards gram swaraj and democratic empowerment of panchayats." He noted that the WHO had recently felicitated ASHA (Accredited Social Health Activist), workers, and said it is a matter of pride for villages.

In the letter, he also wished farmers a good monsoon season.

Published on June 12, 2022