Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Thursday said Naxalism was being wiped out from the jungles, but expressed concern that it was fast spreading roots in urban areas with some political parties also echoing their ideology. Addressing the Republic Plenary Summit organised by a news channel here, Modi also targeted the Congress saying it had crushed the aspirations of people, who also stopped expecting much from the party.
He said things have now changed and the people's aspirations were rising in the past decade since his government came to power.
"Today's India thinks big, sets big targets and delivers big results. It is because the mentality of the country has changed. The country is moving ahead with big aspirations," Modi said.
The prime minister said the government has worked hard on the security front and terror attacks and sleeper cells of terrorists have disappeared from television headlines as well as the country.
"Naxalism in the country is also on its last legs. In the past, over 100 districts were severely affected by this menace. However, this number has drastically reduced to just around two dozen districts today," Modi said.
He said this was made possible after the government focused on delivering governance at the grassroots level.
"While Naxalism is steadily being eradicated from jungles due to decisive actions, it is beginning to spread its roots into urban centres, presenting a new challenge," Modi said.
"Urban Naxals have cast their net so fast that a political party that opposed urban Naxals, was inspired by the thoughts of Gandhiji and had its pulse on the people, was now echoing their views," he said.
"Urban Naxals have entrenched themselves in such political parties. Today, we can hear the voice of urban Naxals in these political parties. We can imagine how deep their roots go," Modi said in an apparent reference to the Congress party.
"We have to remember that urban Naxals are strongly opposed to our development and heritage," he said.
The prime minister said both development and preservation of heritage were necessary for a developed India. "We have to guard against urban Naxals.".
Modi said the Congress had trampled the aspirations of the people who had stopped expecting from it. But in the last 10 years, the aspirations of the people have increased, he said.
He also said that the country has come out of the stereotype that it will sink, and take the world down with it and today India's achievements and successes have sparked a new wave of hope across the globe.
The prime minister said that in the last decade India has become the fifth largest economy of the world and will soon become the third largest.
He noted that after 65 years of Independence, India was the 11th largest economy in the world.
Asserting that India is driving global growth today, he said the country's achievements and successes have given new hope across the world. "From toys to weapons, India has become self-reliant in the past 10 years and has turned into an exporter from an importer."
The prime minister pointed out that in 2007, some 18 years ago, India's annual GDP stood at Rs 1 lakh crore, representing the total economic activity for an entire year.
But now, the same level of activity is achieved within just a single quarter. This remarkable transformation highlights the rapid pace of economic growth in present-day India, he asserted.
Referring to parliamentary debates, he said opposition members ask why PM Modi is not doing certain things, which indicates that they too think that Modi can do.
Source Name : Economic Times