Man from Rajasthan wants to gift giant ‘Namo brooms’ to Modi
KOTA: A broom manufacturer of Kota waits for an appointment with Prime Minister Narendra Modi for the last two years to present him a pair of brooms.
Inspired by the Swachh Bharat Abhiyan (SBM), a flagship programme of the Modi government, Rahul Jain (35) prepared two brooms — 8 feet 6 inch tall and 3 inch wide — as a gift for Modi. Jain called them ‘Namo (Narendra Modi) brooms’, each of which, he said, was priced ₹850.
Modi’s slogans — Swachh Bharat Abhiyan and Sabka Saath Sabka Vikas — are written on the brooms, which Jain claims are the tallest in the world. He has staked a claim before the Limca Book of Records.
“I made a telephone call to the PMO in April 2015, seeking an appointment with PM Modi; officials told me to send an email to the appointment section of the PMO,” said Jain, who runs Nakoda Enterprises that produces brooms. “I sent the email that was acknowledged, but I did not get an acceptance or rejection regarding an appointment.”
Jain said he had sent four emails to the PMO between April and August in 2015 and made telephone calls, but had not got a positive reply about an appointment.
“I prepared ‘Namo brooms’ to express my gratitude to the PM for the cleanliness drive; I am now disappointed over the PMO’S poor response to my request for an appointment,” Jain said.
“Even if an appointment with the PM is not possible, the PMO should at least ask me to send the brooms.”
Jain said he would file a right to information (RTI) application to know the status of his request.
The ‘Namo brooms’ have been made from coconut leaves brought from Pollaichi (Tamil Nadu) and bamboo from Assam. Jain said eight workers, mostly Dalits from Jhabua district in Madhya Pradesh, and some from a minority community prepared the brooms.
Jain’s family is in the business of broom manufacturing for the last two decades. Kota brooms are sold in many states and the business is worth around ₹5 crore per annum, he said.