Modi urges for vaccinations in radio address

NEW DELHI: Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Sunday sounded a note of caution as he urged people to keep following Covid protocol ahead of the festive season and ensure that no one is left out of vaccination’s “circle of safety”.

In his monthly “Mann Ki Baat” radio broadcast, following his return from the three-day US visit, the Prime Minister also said that common people are getting connected to digital transactions through fin-tech Unified Payments Interface (UPI) and its prevalence is increasing.

When the whole country will celebrate “Maryada Purshottam Shri Ram’s victory” over untruth, people should also remember the fight against Covid, he said.

“Team India is making new records everyday in this fight. With regards to vaccination, the country has made many such records which are being talked about the world over,” the Prime Minister said in the radio broadcast that was recorded before he left for the United States.

Asserting that every Indian has an important role in the fight against the pandmeic, Modi said not only one should get the vaccine administered when their turn comes, but they should also ensure that no one is left out of this “circle of safety”.

“Those around you who have not gotten vaccinated also have to be taken to the vaccine centre. Even after getting vaccinated, the necessary protocol has to be followed,” he said, urging the people to continue taking precautions.

“I hope that once again Team India will keep the flag flying high in this fight...Wishing you all, every person in the country, the best for the forthcoming festivals,” Modi said.

The PM’s remarks came ahead of the Durga Puja, Dussehra and Diwali celebrations.

India vaccinated a record 25 million people on PM Modi’s birthday on September 17.

In his remarks, Modi also stressed on the resolve for “economic cleanliness”, asserting that the way building of toilets enhanced the dignity of poor, similarly economic cleanliness ensures their rights. He high

lighted how through the Jan Dhan accounts, the rightful money of the poor was getting credited directly into their accounts and because of this, obstacles like corruption have been reduced very significantly.

“It is true that technology can help a lot in economic cleanliness. It is a matter of delight for us that even in villages, the common person is getting connected in the direction of digital transactions through fin-tech UPI and its prevalence is increasing,” Modi said.

During August, 3.5 billion UPI transactions took place which also means that UPI was used for digital transactions more than 3.5 billoon times, Modi said.

Today, on an average, digital payments of more than Rs six lakh crore are happening through UPI, he said, adding that through this the economy of the country is acquiring “cleanliness and transparency”.

In his remarks, PM Modi, on the occasion of the World Rivers Day, called for collective efforts to keep our rivers pollution-free.

“As we celebrate World Rivers Day today, I urge the people across the country to mark a ‘river festival’ at least once a year,” he said.

He also called for making a record business of Khadi products on Mahatma Gandhi’s birth anniversary on October 2.

Noting that Mahatma Gandhi had connected cleanliness to the dream of Independence, Modi said that today after so many decades, the cleanliness movement has once again connected the

country to the dream of a new India. “And this is also becoming a campaign to change our habits too and we must not forget that this cleanliness is a programme. This cleanliness is a responsibility of the transition of ‘sanskar’ from generation to generation and when the campaign for cleanliness continues generation after generation in the entire society, cleanliness as a trait gets imbibed,” he said.

Lauding the feat of a team of eight specially-abled persons who recently created a world record when they reached Kumar Post at over 15,000 feet on the Siachen glacier, Modi said it shows the spirit of the people of the country to tackle every challenge with a “can do culture”, a “can do determination” and a “can do attitude”.