Swami Vivekananda wanted empowerment to be taken to the poor: Prime Minister Modi 

Swami Vivekananda wanted empowerment to be taken to the poor, if the poor themselves cannot easily go to empowerment, said Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Sunday.

"First, he wanted empowerment to be taken to the poor if the poor themselves cannot easily go to empowerment. Second, he said about India's poor, "They are to be given ideas; their eyes are to be opened to what is going on in the world around them and then they will work out their own salvation," PM Modi said while addressing the 125th-anniversary celebrations of "Prabuddha Bharata" journal, which was started by Swami Vivekananda.

The Prime Minister asserted that this is the approach with which India is moving ahead today.

Referring to Swami Vivekanand's letter to the Maharaja of Mysore and to Swami Ramakrishnananda, the Prime Minister underlined two clear thoughts in the Hindu philosopher's approach to empower the poor.

"If the poor cannot access banks, then banks must reach the poor. That is what the Jan Dhan Yojana did. If the poor cannot access insurance, then insurance must reach the poor. This is what the Jan Suraksha schemes did. If the poor cannot access health-care, then we must take health-care to the poor. This is what the Ayushman Bharat scheme did. Roads, education, electricity and internet connectivity are being taken to every corner of the country, especially to the poor. This is igniting aspirations among the poor. And, it is these aspirations that are driving the growth of the country," he further emphasised.

"Swami Vivekananda saw India as a cultural consciousness that has been living and breathing for centuries, an India that only emerges stronger after every challenge despite contrary predictions. He wanted to make India 'Prabuddha' or awakened," said PM Modi.

The Prime Minister said Swami Vivekananda named this journal Prabuddha Bharata to manifest the spirit of our nation. "He wanted to create an awakened India. Those who understand Bharat, are aware that it is beyond just political or territorial entity," he added.

The Prime Minister further stated, Prabuddha Bharata is a special journal. "It is an iconic journal closely associated with Swamivivekanand himself. It is also among the longest-running English journals in the country. There is a powerful thought behind this name," he added.

"Swami Vivekananda had great compassion for the poor, he truly believed that poverty was at the root of every problem. Therefore, poverty had to be removed from the nation," said PM Modi.