Our festivals reflect India's unity in diversity: PM Modi in 'Mann Ki Baat'

PM Modi said various states are celebrating their traditional new year on Sunday and many others will be celebrating in the coming days

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Prime Minister Narendra Modi said on Sunday that various festivals being celebrated today and to be observed in the coming days are a pointer to the spirit of unity pervading India's diversity and asked people to continue to strengthen this feeling.

Speaking in his monthly Mann ki Baat broadcast, Modi said various states are celebrating their traditional new year on Sunday and many others will be celebrating in the coming days. 

Other festivals, including Eid, are being celebrated, he said, greeting people on these festivals.

He noted that summer vacation in schools will also fall in a few weeks and said the long days of summer are a time for students to develop new hobbies and polish their skills.

He urged those offering various activities for students to use the hashtag of "myholidays" and students and parents to share their experiences with "holidaymemories" hashtag.

In his address, Modi stressed on the campaign for "catch the rain" by conserving water through various means and asserted over 11 billion cubic metre water has been saved in the last seven to eight years through such practices.

He also urged people to make yoga a part of their daily lives, saying it is an invaluable gift to humanity from India.

The International Yoga Day on June 21 has now become a grand celebration, he said, noting that this year's theme for the event is "yoga for one earth one health".  Flagging the issue of textile waste, Prime Minister Narendra Modi also said India was facing a "huge challenge" on that front and hailed the commendable efforts being undertaken to deal with it.

In his Mann Ki Baat radio broadcast, Modi said he wants to talk about a challenge that is directly related to all the people.

"This challenge is of 'textile waste'. You must be wondering, what is this new problem of textile waste? Actually, textile waste has become a major cause of worry for the whole world. Nowadays, the trend of getting rid of old clothes as soon as possible and buying new ones is increasing all over the world," he said.

Have you ever thought what happens to the old clothes that you stop wearing, Modi asked.

"This becomes textile waste. A lot of global research is being done on this subject. It has come to light in a research that only less than one percent of textile waste is recycled into new clothes," he said, noting that India is the third country in the world where the maximum textile waste is generated.

"This means that we also face a huge challenge. But I am happy that many commendable efforts are being undertaken in our country to deal with this challenge. Many Indian start-ups have started working on textile recovery facilities," the prime minister said.

There are many such teams that are also working for the empowerment of our ragpicker brothers and sisters, he said.

"Many young friends are involved in the efforts towards sustainable fashion. They recycle old clothes and footwear and distribute them to the needy. Many items like decorative pieces, handbags, stationery and toys are being made from textile waste," he pointed out.

Many organisations are engaged in popularising the 'circular fashion brands' these days, Modi said.

"New rental platforms are also coming up, where designer clothes are available on rent. Some organisations collect old clothes, make them reusable and distribute them to the poor," he said.

Modi pointed out that some cities are also carving a new identity for themselves in dealing with textile waste, and cited the examples of Panipat in Haryana and Tirupur in Tamil Nadu.

"Panipat in Haryana is emerging as a global hub for textile recycling.Bengaluru is also creating a distinct identity for itself with innovative tech solutions. More than half of the textile waste is collected here, which is an example for our other cities as well.

"Similarly, Tirupur in Tamil Nadu is engaged in textile waste management through wastewater treatment and renewable energy," Modi said.