Ahmedabad (Gujarat): Union Home Minister Amit Shah on Sunday unveiled the mural of Mahatma Gandhi at the Sabarmati Riverfront, Ahmedabad on the 74th death anniversary of the Father of the Nation. To commemorate the 74th Martyrs' Day, in the 75th year of independence, Khadi and Village Industries Commission (KVIC) has installed a grand wall mural of Mahatma Gandhi made of clay Kulhads at the iconic Sabarmati Riverfront in Ahmedabad.
Union Home Minister Amit Shah said on the occasion, "Today is the day to pay homage to the martyrs of the country from 1857 to 1947. The mural of self-reliance has been put up on the banks of the Sabarmati river today. This is the 75th year of independence of the country and the 'Amrit Mahotsav' of independence, it's time to decide where India will be after 100 years of independence. If there is a competition to award the best man of the century, Bapu will surely win."
Amit Shah further said that Bapu's name was used for many years but Swadeshi was forgotten and Prime Minister Narendra Modi took it forward through programs like Make in India, Atmanirbhar Bharat, and Vocal for Local.
Shah said, "When Narendra Modi was the Chief Minister of Gujarat, he started trying to bring Khadi forward and to promote the national language, the Prime Minister always gives speeches in Hindi."
The Union Home Minister distributed electric chalk to about 200 people and beekeeping boxes to about 200 families in his Lok Sabha constituency Gandhinagar.
The wall mural is made of 2,975 clay Kulhads that have been made by 75 trained potters from across the country, at Ahmedabad. Shah, dedicated Mahatma Gandhi's Mural to the nation today, in the august presence of Minister of MSME, Narayan Rane, Chief Minister of Gujarat, Bhupendra Patel, Minister of State for MSME, Bhanu Pratap Singh Verma, Chairman KVIC, Vinai Kumar Saxena, and other dignitaries.
Earlier on Sunday, Prime Minister Narendra Modi paid tribute to Mahatma Gandhi on his 74th death anniversary and said that it is a collective endeavour to further popularise the noble ideals of the father of the nation.
India observes Martyrs' Day every year on January 30 to mark the death anniversary of Mahatma Gandhi and to honour his contribution towards the freedom of the country. On January 30, 1948, Mahatma Gandhi was assassinated by Nathuram Godse at Gandhi Smriti in Birla house. According to the directions of the central government, two minutes of silence is observed in all states and Union Territories on January 30.
(With agency inputs)
