Rose Day fine but celebrate state days also: Modi

Asserting that he was not opposed to modern concept of celebrating days like Rose Day, the Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Monday suggested that Tamil Nadu or Kerala days could also be celebrated in the north as a way of exhibiting unity in diversity.

"Some people oppose 'days' celebrated in college like 'Rose Day' but I am not against these. Can't we think of celebrating Tamil Nadu Day in Haryana colleges. Punjab colleges should decide that today they will celebrate Kerala Day, sing their songs, wear their costumes, watch their movies. Then they will ask them about their games, how they are played," he said while addressing a function here to mark the 125th year of the famous 'Parliament of world Religion' speech that Swami Vivekananda gave in Chicago.

"Will this not be productive? Will this not lead to one India," he asked.

"Can we not arouse a feeling of pride for every language, state in country," he added.

Invoking the ideals of Vivekananda, Modi made an appeal to reject the outdated ideas which are destructive for the society.

"We need to leave what is outdated... ideas which may have been sanctioned in past and have now come to be detrimental to the society have to be rejected," he said as he extolled the 1893 speech of the social reformer.

He asked youth to inculcate creativity and innovation and not be just "robots".

"There is no life without creativity. Let our creativity also strengthen our nation and fulfil the aspirations of our people," he said.

The Prime Minister said that there was no better place than universities for creativity.

Eulogising the sage further, Modi said he had championed agriculture revolution and entrepreneurship years before it dawned upon others and his correspondence with industrialist Jamsetji Tata tells us of his ambition for "self-reliance".

"The correspondence between Swami Vivekananda and Jamsetji Tata will show the concern Swami-ji had towards India's self-reliance," he said.

The Prime Minister also admonished those from using the slogan of Vande Mataram in vain who litter the street and spit around dirtying them.

Those in the job of cleaning our streets, Modi said, have the right of saying Vande Mataram before anyone else.

"If there is anyone who should have the right to say 'Vande Mataram' before anyone else, it is those children of Mother India who perform the job of cleaning our streets," he said.

The Prime Minister also advised against preaching about our glorious past to justify the present saying that this should be used only in guiding the future of the country.

--IANS

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