All PMs, govts helped make today’s India: Modi

New Delhi, April 14 : Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Thursday said that every government and every Prime Minister post independence contributed to the making of today’s India. He was speaking after inaugurating the Pradhanmantri Sanghralaya which showcases the story of India after independence through the lives and contributions of its Prime Ministers. “Every government formed in independent India has contributed in taking the country to the height it is at today. I have repeated this thing many times from Red Fort also… Every Prime Minister of the country has contributed immensely towards achieving of the goals of constitutional democracy,” he said. Modi said the museum had become a living reflection of the shared heritage of each government. “To remember them is to know the journey of independent India. People coming here will be familiar with the contribution of the former Prime Ministers of the country, their background, their struggles and creations.” Modi expressed pride that many of the Prime Ministers came from ordinary families. He said the fact of such leaders coming from extremely poor and farmer families and then reaching the position of the Prime Minister strengthened the faith in Indian democracy and its traditions. “It also gives confidence to the youth of the country that even a person born in a ordinary family can reach the highest positions in the democratic system of India.” The Prime Minister said that India was the mother of democracy. “The great feature of India’s democracy is that it has been continuously changing with the passage of time. In every era, in every generation, there has been a continuous effort to make democracy more modern and empowered.” Recalling the rich history and prosperous era of India in the past, Modi laid stress on spreading awareness about the correct picture of the country’s heritage. He said the government’s efforts to bring back the stolen heritage from abroad, celebrating places of the glorious heritage, preserving memories of the freedom fighters, the Freedom Fighter Museum and the tribal history museum were steps in that direction. The Prime Minister bought the first ticket to enter the Pradhan Mantri Sangrahalaya. The museum is an endeavour aimed at sensitising and inspiring the younger generation about the leadership, vision and achievements of all Prime Ministers. Representing a seamless blend of the old and the new, the museum integrates the erstwhile Teen Murti Bhawan designated as Block I, with the newly constructed building designated as Block II. According to the PMO, the total area of the two blocks is over 15,600 square metres. The design of the museum building incorporates sustainable and energy conservation practices. Information for the museum was collected through resources and repositories with government and private media platforms, Defence Ministry and foreign news agencies. Appropriate use of the collected works and other literary works, important correspondences, some personal items, gifts and memorabilia, felicitations, honours, medals conferred, commemorative stamps, coins, speeches of Prime Ministers and anecdotal representation of ideologies and different aspects of the lives of Prime Ministers have been reflected in a thematic format in the museum. There are a total of 43 galleries in the museum. ASU MR