India would have been superpower if Sardar Patel was first PM:

Union Petroleum Minister Dharmendra Pradhan on Thursday said India would have been a superpower had Sardar Vallabhbhai Patel been the country's first prime minister.

The 'Iron Man' had made huge contributions towards building a modern and unified India, he said.

"Sardar Patel has made immense contributions is agriculture, cooperation, security and administrative sectors.

"India would have been the superpower by now had Sardar Patel been the first prime minister," Pradhan said on the sidelines of the 'Run for Unity' event, organized here on the occasion of the veteran leader's 144th birth anniversary.

Hailing Prime Minister Narendra Modi for observing 'Patel Jayanti' as 'Ekta Diwas', he said, "The country had almost forgotten the contributions of the country's first home minister. His development model should be followed for the overall welfare of the nation."