New Delhi, March 23 : Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Wednesday urged the people to “never forgive” the perpetrators of Birbhum violence and “those who encourage such criminals”. Expressing grief and condolences on the violent incident in Birbhum district of West Bengal, the Prime Minister assured all cooperation by the Centre to the Mamata Banerjee-led government in bringing the culprits to justice at the earliest. Inaugurating the Biplobi Bharat Gallery at Victoria Memorial Hall via video-conferencing, the Prime Minister said, “The tales of sacrifice of Bhagat Singh, Rajguru and Sukhdev inspire all of us to work tirelessly for the country. “The legacy of our past guides our present, inspires us to build a better future. Therefore, today the country sees its history, its past, as a living source of energy,” he said. The Gallery displays the contribution of the Revolutionaries in the freedom struggle and their armed resistance to the British colonial rule. Modi said today, a New India is bringing back the heritage of the country back from abroad, where ancient statues used to be smuggled to with imp ty. “In the decades before 2014, only a dozen statues could be brought to India. But in the last seven years, this number has increased to more than 225,” he said. The Prime Minister further said that after ‘Nirbhik Subhas,’ a new pearl has been added to Kolkata’s rich heritage in the shape of Biplobi Bharat Gallery. He said the Biplobi Bharat Gallery is a proof of the government’s commitment to preserve and enhance the heritage of West Bengal. He informed that the work on renovating the iconic landmarks of the state like Victoria Memorial, iconic galleries and Metcalf House, is almost over. “Let these symbols of our culture, civilisation continue to inspire the present and future generations of India, this is a great effort in this direction,” he said. Referring to the young age of revolutionaries like Bhagat Singh, Sukhdev, Rajguru, Azad and Khudiram Bose, the Prime Minister said that the youth of India should never consider themselves any lesser. “There is nothing which the youth of India cannot do. There is no such goal which the youth of India cannot achieve,” he said. Referring to the milestone of 400 billion dollars or Rs 30 lakh crore worth of product export that was achieved today, the Prime Minister said that India’s growing exports was a symbol of the strength of its industry, MSMEs and manufacturing capacity and of the strength of agriculture sector. Governor of West Bengal Jagdeep Dhankhar and on Minister G Kishan Reddy were among those present on the occasion. ASU RJ
