With the unprecedented Covid second wave finally receding and most of the country entering into unlocking phase, honourable Prime Minister Shri Narendra Modi, on Monday afternoon, spoke towards reaffirming the faith of the nation in this war against the virus. In his 30 minutes message, the PM enlisted every way in which we are already triumphing over this unseen enemy and how we can emerge victorious in the future.
Like every time, Shri Modi started by offering his condolences to the millions of people who have lost loved ones to this pandemic and reinstated that he stands with them in solidarity. He described that even though this has been the worst pandemic in over a century and none of the globes was prepared to face this, together we have put up a very brave battle and will continue to fight together till the end of the line.
Speaking about the extreme oxygen scarcity the country was reeling under a few days back, the PM applauded how the health care system refused to cower down under it. Even though we had never required the life-saving gas in such a huge quantity before, we succeeded in ramping up productions and importing from our allied nations whenever needed and managed to overcome this humongous challenge together as well. Shri Modi further reiterated that even though the production of crucial drugs has been scaled up and we have improved greatly in terms of infrastructure, adherence to Covid appropriate protocol is still our best weapon in this battle.
Giving a detailed analysis of how great India’s vaccination drive is going, the PM recalled that be it Polio or be it Hepatitis B, it used to take decades for foreign vaccines to hit the Indian market; an inability to produce vaccines would have proved disastrous in this pandemic! At such a juncture the production and tremendous success of the made-in-India vaccines have proved a saviour for the entire country. He also said that a large part of the credit of this success also goes to Mission Indradhanush, initiated in 2014, that had brought India’s 60% vaccine coverage to a stunning 90% in just 5 years.
“Vishwasena siddhi!”
Quoting from sacred texts, Shri Modi emphasized the exigency of faith in such an hour. When the entire world was waiting with batted breath to see how a developing country like ours would deal with a pandemic of this stature with her vast population, our clear conscience and tireless efforts brought us to a position where we could proudly exclaim that India is no less than any developed country of the world. The PM noted that it’s only with our faith that we have succeeded in launching two indigenous vaccines and have three more under trial. It’s only with our belief that Mission Covid Surakshya has achieved tremendous results and today we can bring kid’s vaccine and nasal vaccine under trial as well.
Shri Modi also touched upon the very sensitive subject of State-Centre partnership by elucidating the way the mantle of Covid management has evolved in the last couple of months. The complaint that ‘one size does not fit all’ was echoing throughout the country towards the end of April. And when states became too questioning & demanding and accused the Centre of dictating Covid management terms, the central government finally yielded under various pressures and consented to share a part of the power and the works involved with the states from the 1st of May. And interestingly, the month of May was witness to the monstrous second wave, vaccine shortage, oxygen scarcity, and all sorts of other difficulties. As states began realizing the gravity of the situation and the responsibility associated with the said powers, said the PM, they began complaining again. And keeping that in mind the centre has decided to revoke those powers that were temporarily given to the states. Shri Modi said that new guidelines will be formulated and the system will be changed back to what it was during the initial phases of vaccination.
And with the central government taking the responsibility for the vaccination drive once again, Shri Modi declared that from the 21st of June, the youth of the entire country will be vaccinated for free as the centre will procure 75% of the total vaccines produced and provide them to states as required. Focusing on the utmost value of every single dose, the PM also explained that states will be informed of vaccine supplies beforehand so that wastage can be minimized. He also added that private sector hospitals will be able to purchase 25% of the production themselves. Such hospitals will charge no more than INR 150 for their services and the duty of overseeing this will be assigned to respective states.
“Prapte apadam na vyathate kadachit,
Udyogam anu ichchhati jaa pramatah!”
Once again bringing forth a gem from our scriptures, the PM explained that a true winner is one who instead of being overwhelmed by difficulties, stands up to them and keeps trying till the end. India’s vaccination drive has been continuing splendidly, he said, and as winners, we will keep moving towards normalcy together. Adding to India’s resilient fight against this pandemic, Shri Modi described how the country’s indigenous CoWin platform is being lauded worldwide as well.
Relieving a large number of less privileged families, Prime Minister Shri Modi made another crucial declaration of providing over 80 Crore families with free ration, till November, through the Gareeb Kalyan Anna Yojana. Emphasizing how he continues to stand with the entire nation in these perilous hours, Shri Modi said that he shall ensure that none of the less privileged of his family has to sleep hungry.
Targeting a certain section of the society which has been indulging in unnecessary politicization and fear-mongering even during such a sensitive hour, the PM appealed to their humanity to stop engaging in such despicable activities. Shri Modi added that a part of the media continues to cast doubts in the minds of the public, even the front line workers and those heading the vaccine production were hindered; the country is watching and those playing with the lives of citizens will never be forgiven. Shri Modi also requested the general public to understand that unlock does not mean that the threat has been eliminated and therefore we must continue to stay alert and abide by Covid guidelines.
Before wrapping up his address, The Prime Minister once again called for the nation to have faith. Because come what may, it is our belief that makes us emerge victoriously.
The Prime Minister’s address came on a day when India had recorded 1,00,636 fresh Covid cases, the lowest in the past two months. Although Shri Modi’s announcements have received varied responses from different political sections, the decisions have unanimously been hailed, as universal free vaccination shall ultimately save lives. Amid all this Shri Narendra Modi’s powerful message that faith shall lead to success remains invaluable.
[author title=”Megha Satapathy” image=”http://goachronicle.com/wp-content/uploads/2021/02/IMG_20210205_095950.jpg”]Journalist, Goa Chronicle
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