The country’s women are performing wonders in every field in the changing India, Prime Minister Modi says
India of the 21st century is moving ahead with the mantra of women-led development, Prime Minister Narendra Modi said on Sunday (January 28, 2024).
 
Speaking in the 109th edition of the monthly radio show Mann Ki Baat, the first in 2024, he said, “In the changing India, our daughters, women of the country are performing wonders in every field”.
 
During the broadcast, the Prime Minister talked about the display of women power in the Republic Day Parade 2024, successful women athletes as well as women’s self-help groups.
 
Referring to the Republic Day celebrations on January 26, 2024, he said, “The most discussed element was seeing Women Power in the Parade… when the women contingents of Central Security Forces and Delhi Police started marching on Kartavya path, everyone was filled with pride”.
 
Prime Minister Modi pointed out that of the 20 contingents that marched in the Republic Day Parade, 11 were of women. “We saw that even in the tableaux that went by, all the artistes were women,” he noted, adding that about 1,500 women took part in the cultural programs that took place.
 
The tableau of the Defence Research & Development Organisation (DRDO) also came in for special mention. “The tableau belonging to DRDO also attracted everyone's attention. It showed how woman power is protecting the country in every field - water, land, sky, cyber and space. India of the 21st century is thus moving ahead with the mantra of Women Led Development,” Prime Minister Modi said.
 
He then went on to highlight the achievements of women athletes, pointing out that 13 of the sports persons honoured with the Arjuna Awards this year were women. “These women athletes participated in many major tournaments and brought glory to the flag of India. Physical challenges, economic challenges could not hold up vis-à-vis these courageous and talented players,” he said. 
 
Another area where women have made their mark, Prime Minister Modi noted, was self-help groups. “Today, the number of women self-help groups in the country has also increased and their scope of work has also expanded a lot. That day is not far when you will see Namo Drone Didis helping in farming using drones in the fields in every village,” he stated.
 
People’s Padma Awards, 75 Years of Indian Constitution
Expressing happiness that the system of Padma awards has completely changed in the last decade, Prime Minister Modi said it had now become the ‘People's Padma’. “There have been many changes in the system of conferring the Padma awards. People even have a chance to nominate themselves now. This is the reason why this time 28 times more nominations have been received compared to 2014. This shows that the prestige of The Padma Award, its credibility and respect for it is rising every year,” he noted.
 
Prime Minister Modi also made the following points in his Mann ki Baat broadcast:
  
This year marks 75 years of the Indian Constitution, as well as the Supreme Court... The Constitution of India is made after such intense brainstorming, that it is called a 'Living Document'. In the third chapter of the original copy of the constitution, the fundamental rights of the citizens of Bharat have been described.
 
The occasion of Pran Pratishtha in Ayodhya (on January 22, 2024) seems to have bound around a common thread, crores of people of the country together. Everyone's feelings are unanimous, everyone's devotion is in unison… Ram is in everyone's words, Ram is in everyone's heart.
 
The Ministry of AYUSH has categorized the data and terminology related to Ayurveda, Siddha and Unani medicine, with the help of the World Health Organization as well.
 
It is a matter of enthusiasm for the country that while the voting percentage is decreasing in many countries of the world, the voting percentage in India is increasing. In 1951-52, when elections were held for the first time in the country, only about 45 percent of the voters cast their votes. Today this figure has increased significantly.