Ahmedabad

Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Saturday highlighted the importance of Khadi as he recalled its role as the symbol of the country's self-respect by Mahatma Gandhi during the freedom movement.

He said that Khadi is a perfect example of eco-friendly and sustainable clothing which leaves the least carbon footprint. Prime Minister attended the 'Khadi Utsav' event in Ahmedabad on Saturday.

In a one of its kind event being held as part of Azadi ka Amrit Mahotsav, Khadi Utsav is being organised to pay tribute to khadi and its importance during the freedom struggle.

Prime Minister also tried his hands on charkha. Gujarat Chief Minister Bhupendra Patel also attended the event. Addressing the gathering, PM Modi said, "We have seen that Khadi became the force of the freedom movement and broke the chains of slavery. The same Khadi can become an inspiration to make India develop and self-reliant. On the occasion of 75 years of independence, 7,500 sisters and daughters created history by spinning yarn on Charkha. Spinning Charkha took me back to my childhood days."

He further said, "Khadi is an example of sustainable clothing. Khadi is an example of eco-friendly clothing. Khadi has the least carbon footprint. There are many countries where the temperature is high, Khadi is also very important from the point of view of health. Therefore Khadi can play a huge role at the global level."

He said on August 15 from the rampant of Red Fort, he spoke about five resolves. "At this holy place, on the banks of Sabarmati, I want to repeat the Pancha-Pranas. First - make a developed India; second - abandonment of slavery mentality; third - pride of our heritage; fourth- unity of the nation; and fifth - civil duty," PM Modi stated.

Referring to India's freedom struggle, he said, Khadi was made the symbol of the country's self-respect by Gandhiji during the freedom movement, after independence, there has been an inferiority complex on Khadi.

"Because of this, Khadi and the village industry associated with Khadi were completely runied. This condition of Khadi was very painful, especially for Gujarat," PM said.

Prime Minister said his government strived for reinstating the pride for Khadi. "We added the pledge of 'Khadi for Transformation' to 'Khadi for Nation' and 'Khadi for Fashion'. We started spreading Gujarat's success experiences across the country. The problems which were related to Khadi across the country were resolved. We encouraged countrymen to buy Khadi products," he said.

Recognizing the contribution of women, PM Modi said women power is the driving factor in the growing strength of India's Khadi industry.

"The spirit of entrepreneurship is ingrained in our sisters and daughters. Evidence of this is also the expansion of Sakhi Mandals in Gujarat," he said.

"In the past decades, India's toy industry was getting destroyed due to competition from the foreign toy industry. With the efforts of the government, the situation is now changing. Now there is a decline in toys imported from abroad," PM Modi added.

During the event, Prime Minister also inaugurated Atal Bridge in Ahmedabad. He said Atal Bridge is not only connecting the two banks of the Sabarmati river but is also unprecedented in design and innovation. Gujarat's famous kite festival has also been taken care of in its design.