Rule of Lord Ram was source of inspiration for Constitution makers: PM Modi

Prime Minister Narendra Modi declared that the Constitution's authors were inspired by Lord Ram's rule, pointing out that images of him, Sita, and Lakshman were included throughout the document.

New Delhi:Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Sunday asserted that the rule of Lord Ram was a source of inspiration for the Constitution makers, noting his, Sita's and Lakshman's pictures adorned the pages of the Constitution. In the first Mann Ki Baat broadcast of this year, Modi said the consecration ceremony at the Ram temple in Ayodhya brought people across the country together, making visible the collective strength of the country.

"And that is why on January 22 in Ayodhya I had talked about 'Dev to Desh' and 'Ram to Rashtra'," he said. "Everyone's feeling is the same, everyone's devotion is the same. Ram is in everyone's words, Ram is in everyone's heart," Modi said. During this period, many people sang Ram bhajans and dedicated them to Lord Ram, while on January 22 evening the whole country lit 'Ram Jyoti' and celebrated Diwali, he noted.

"During this time, the collective strength of the country was visible which also forms the basis of our pledge of a developed India," the prime minister said. The collective power will take the country to new heights of progress, he added. In his broadcast, he urged young voters to register themselves so that they could exercise their franchise and lauded the growing participation of people in voting at a time when many countries in the world are seeing a downward trend.

Nearly 45 per cent votes were cast in the first national elections in 1951-52, and the percentage has been going up while the number of electorate has surged to 96 cr, over three times the US population, he said. In the monthly broadcast, Modi noted that the absence of a common language for the terminology of diseases, treatments and medicines in alternative medicines like Ayurveda, Siddha or Unani was a longstanding problem, and said a solution has been now found.

He said, "I am happy to share that the Ministry of AYUSH has categorised the data and terminology related to Ayurveda, Siddha and Unani medicine, with the help of the World Health Organisation as well. Through the efforts of both, the terminology related to disease and treatment in Ayurveda, Unani and Siddha medicine has been codified." He added that an advantage of this would be that if patients go to another doctor with their slip, the doctor will get complete information.

"That slip will help one in knowing one's illness, treatment, what medicines one has been taking, for how long the treatment has been going on, what things one is allergic to," he said. In a reference to the recent Padma awards, Modi said many of those bestowed the honour were those who worked at grassroots and away from the limelight to make big changes in society.

"I am very happy that the system of Padma awards has transformed completely in the last decade. Now it has become people's Padma," he said. The contribution of each one of the Padma awardees is an inspiration for the countrymen, he said and added that many of them were those who brought glory to the country in the world of classical dance, classical music, folk dance, theatre and bhajans.

Many people from abroad have also been honoured with the Padma awards, as their work is rendering new heights to Indian culture and heritage, he said. Lauding the presence of women power in the Republic Day parade, the prime minister said out of the 20 contingents, 11 were all-women.

"We saw that even in the tableaux that went by, all the artistes were women. About one and a half thousand daughters took part in the cultural programs that took place," he said. India of the 21st century is moving ahead with the mantra of women-led development, he said. This time 13 women athletes were honoured with the Arjuna Award, he noted.

Lauding organ donors, he said some people perform their duties through social service, some by joining the Army, some by teaching the next generation but there are some who even after the end of life fulfil their responsibilities towards society. In recent years, there have been more than a thousand people in the country whose families donated their organs after their death, he said and appreciated their family members too.