According to Prime Minister Narendra Modi, Sant Ravidas ji’s teachings would inspire the Shiromani Gurudev Shri Ravidas ji Memorial’s grandeur and divinity.
At Sant Shiromani Gurudev Shri Ravidas Memorial Sthal in Badtuma hamlet of Sagar district in Madhya Pradesh on Saturday, Prime Minister Narendra Modi performs a “Bhoomi Poojan.” (ANI)
On Saturday, Madhya Pradesh’s Sagar district’s Badtuma village saw the laying of the cornerstone for the Sant Shiromani Gurudev Shri Ravidas ji Memorial, which would be built over a century.
The Prime Minister said, “Sant Shiromani Gurudev Shri Ravidas ji Memorial will have grandeur as well as divinity which will flow from the teaching of Sant Ravidas ji.”
He also added, “The memorial is steeped in the spirit of ‘Samrasta’ as the soil of more than 20,000 villages and 300 rivers have been used in it. Families from Madhya Pradesh have sent grain for ‘Samrast Bhoj’ and five yatras also concluded here at Sagar. These yatras mark a new era of social harmony.”
In one and a half years, according to PM Modi, the temple will be finished, and he is confident that Sant Ravidas would attend its dedication because of his blessing. “With blessings of Sant Ravidasji, will come to inaugurate the temple as well,” he said
A museum will also be erected to showcase Sant Ravidas’s work and personality. The temple will be 10,000 square feet in size and built in the Nagar style. There will also be four galleries, a library, Sangat Hall, Jal Kund, and a Bhakt Niwas present.There will be two impressive entrances and lighting setups for the temple.
Taking about the teachings of Sant Ravidasji, the Prime Minister said, “The emergence of evils in society is a natural occurrence. It is the strength of Indian society that a Sant or a Mahatma like Ravidas ji emerges time and again to ward off such evils. During the Mughal era, it was Sant Ravidas ji who was creating awareness and preaching ways to ward off evils of the society.”
The Prime Minister stated, “Sant Ravidas ji was raising his voice against malpractices prevalent in the society. The Sant said dependency is the biggest sin and that those who accept it and do not take a stand against it are not loved by anybody. Sant Ravidas ji provided strength to the society to fight oppression, and Chatrapati Shivaji used it as an inspiration to lay the foundations of Swarajya.”
“Today, the nation is moving forward with the same spirit of liberation and rejecting the mentality of slavery,” he included.
Talking about the inspiration drew from Sant Ravidasji, he described, “I know the pain of hunger and self-respect of the poor. I am a member of your family and I don’t need to look into the books to understand your pain. Free ration was ensured for more than 80 million people under Pradhanmantri Garib Kalyan Anna Yojana during pandemic to support my family members.”
The PM described how several programs had been started to better the lives of Dalits, the underprivileged, tribal people, and women at all stages of life.
“Matru Vandana Yojana, Mission Indradhanush, Sickle Cell Anaemia elimination, a campaign to free India from Tuberculosis by 2025, Ayushman Card and others schemes have changed the lives of people,” said the PM.
He said that the Standup India program and MUDRA loans were benefiting Dalits and the impoverished the most.
He referenced the 400-acre Lakha Banjara Lake and claimed that as part of the Jal Jeevan Mission, Dalit villages, underdeveloped regions, and tribal areas are receiving piped water.
“Neither the people of this society are weak, nor their history. Great personalities have emerged from these sections of the society. The country is proudly preserving their legacy,” Modi said, citing the renovation of the temple at Sant Ravidas ji’s birthplace in Banaras, the construction of the Sant Ravidas-themed Global Skill Park in Govindpura, Bhopal, the designation of key locations associated with Baba Saheb’s life as Panch-Teerth, and the creation of museums in numerous states to preserve the illustrious past of tribal society.
Attacking the previous governments, Modi said, “Schemes used to be introduced during the previous governments according to the election season. But we think that the country should stand with Dalit, deprived, backward, tribal and women at every stage of life. Let us support their hopes and aspirations.”
According to the Prime Minister, a new era ushers in inspiration and advancement (Prerna aur Pragati). The PM dedicated two $1,580 million road projects as well as the expansion of the Kota-Bina train line, which cost more than $2,475 million.
Mangubhai Patel, the governor of Madhya Pradesh, Shivraj Singh Chouhan, the chief minister of the Union, Jyotiraditya Scindia, Virender Kumar, and Prahlad Singh Patel, as well as MP V D Sharma and others, attended the event.
