A visionary, dynamic, decisive leader that I am blessed to work with and receive his valuable guidance as he steered the ship of governance that put India on the map of the world more prominently. His globetrotting endeavours have made me beam with pride to have had the opportunity of being guided by a world leader. Prime Minister Narendra Modiji’s prodigal leadership and idealistic vision is such that it is taking India to newer progressive heights.
In his 8 years of governance, Modiji has been a pioneer when it comes to being an approachable and a kind leader who has been there for the masses; he is a leader of the poor and marginalised people. His efforts to serve every last citizen of the country are inspirational as he has guided leaders of every State towards adapting the Antodaya Tatva while preaching to the entire country the importance of being Atmanirbhar. His concept of making Indians self-reliant in all aspects has been competitive and resilient, encouraging equity, and being self-sustaining and self-generating.
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Garnering inspiration, I have incorporated the motto of Atmanirbharta in Goa and have launched ‘Swayampurna Goa’ with Modiji’s concept of self reliance being imbibed into people and put into practice in various sectors.
In his journey of serving people, Modiji has touched lives; he has helped citizens from every walk of life generating helpful schemes for everyone, his focus being upliftment of poor and marginalised people. Modiji has always routed his support to Goa. He has paid attention to detail of a day to day life of an aam aadmi. Let us take a walk down the memory lane while we bask in the glory of the progress that 8 years of the Modi Government has shown us.
Modiji started this voyage of his visionary governance in 2014, and he made sure he won people’s love and faith, as he started his second term, a historical win with a bigger margin. His energies focussed on Jan Kalyan since then. The government resumed with a series of economic reforms following a mixed bag of legislative and policy changes.
As the pandemic entered our lives and knocked down the world it definitely shook India as well. Modiji’s unwavering stance led the country to fight this disease with huge support from the central government. His motivation to get maximum people safe from the disease and promoting vaccination was upheld here in Goa. He generously congratulated and complimented our efforts at the seamless execution of vaccination drives and for our achievement as being the one of the first States to be 100% vaccinated.
He introduced a series of schemes which helped people face COVID-19 with support and ease. Pradhan Mantri Garib Kalyan Anna Yojana was started with the aim to provide respite to the needy by providing every family with rice and pulses; 80 crore people all over India have benefitted from this scheme. And in Goa, almost 5.43 lakh beneficiaries have been facilitated with the scheme benefits.
PM Kissan Samman Nidhi Scheme provided the much needed respite to Goan farmer families as they were supported by the Centre. Over 11,500 Goan farmers availed benefits of this scheme in Goa. Modiji’s concern towards our State was visible when he interacted with the benefiting farmer and complimented their enthusiasm to partake in this traditional trade.
PM’s Svanidhi Yojana has fairly empowered street vendors by not only approving loans, but also for their holistic development and economic upliftment. Modiji also supported the citizens with loan sanction to rebuild and reconstruct their houses under the PM Awas Yojana. I can proudly say that more than 4n500 applications have been accepted by the Goa Government under this scheme. As Goa proudly functions on this double engine government people can now enjoy the benefits provided by Modiji’s government to its maximum capacity.
Goans have also benefitted from Pradhan Mantri Mudra Yojana as self employment was motivated and self help groups availed loans to expand and flourish their businesses. This scheme enhanced women empowerment as they have efficiently expanded their businesses and achieved financial stability.
Modiji’s support has also led me to provide water supply to every household under the scheme of Har Ghal Nal se Jal. With diligent efforts we were able to successfully provide 2.30 lakh homes with functioning tap connections. It is fulfilling to be able to serve people while we conserve our environment and Modiji has based his people oriented governance on the facet of conservation and provision.
When it comes to the youth of this country Modiji has introduced skill development as a tool to enhance job based skills in order to secure appropriate and suitable positions at companies. Under his guidance, we have formed Directorate of Skill Development and Entrepreneurship with an aim to reduce unemployment among educated youth of Goa and equip them will required skills and make way for suitable employment opportunities. While our Prime Minister promotes improvement in the quality of education imparted at our institutions, he has been pioneer at inspiring me to provide the best quality of infrastructure to all the educational institutions in the State.
Modiji introduced the iconic Swacch Bharat Mission and following his guidance we together with the help of authorities and Swayampurna Mitras have made Goa an Open Defecation Free State. Goa was officially declared an open defecation free (ODF) State in September 2019. We also focussed on improving solid waste management with the launch of state of the art solid waste management plants at Saligao and Kundaim coupled with top notch technology and expertise.
Modiji’s vision towards sustainable development has been upheld in our State of Goa and campaigns supporting his endeavours are launched at large scales with an aim to walk step by step along with Central Government’s journey towards progress.
Let us now talk about PM Modi’s optimistic journey of a Digital India. With the launch of this campaign Modiji has given a slight push to the country towards digitization. Goa Government under the leadership and inspiration of Central Government’s campaign has stepped into digitizing government facilities to incorporate ease of doing business in all our departments. All major departments like Tourism, PWD and Power, etc, in Goa are eagerly and enthusiastically joining this bandwagon. To ensure that Internet connectivity doesn’t become an issue while we provide maximum services online, a plan for introducing schemes like Har Ghar Fiber is on top priority of the Government.
Central Government under the leadership of Modiji has supported the State of Goa in all its progressive and developmental projects. Goa’s Infrastructure in all the sectors has seen a massive facelift while the Centre has kept its unwavering backing intact. Atal Setu, Zuari Bridge, our highways are a part of the road infrastructure that has seen progress. Zuari Bridge is going to be the widest bridge in India. The health sector in Goa has received Ayush Hospital and the super specialty unit at Goa Medical College in Bambolim.
Working under the guidance of Modiji has been an ecstatic experience as he inspires not just us but people all over the globe. His leadership skills are looked at with respect by fellow global leaders. I am very thankful for his support towards the monumental progress and development in Goa.
(The author is Hon. Chief Minister of Goa)
