Prime Minister Narendra Modi today chaired the All India Mayors’ Conference in Varanasi Uttar Pradesh via video conferencing. In his address, the Prime Minister said our cities are the driving force of our economy. He said we should make our cities a hub of a vibrant economy.
Newly elected Agartala Mayor Dipak Majumdar attended the conference among 120 others.
The Prime Minister urged the Mayors’ to make their cities vibrant, clean and beautiful. Elaborating on the renovation works done in Varanasi, Mr. Modi said development of Kashi will be a roadmap for the development of other cities in the country. He urged the Mayors to work towards cleanliness in their wards and organise beauty competitions between the wards.
The Prime Minister said most of the cities in our country are traditional cities, developed in a traditional way. He said in this era of modernization, the antiquity of these cities is equally important. The Prime Minister insisted that destroying the existing structures is not the way but emphasis should be on rejuvenation and preservation.
Modi further said we should also work on empowering MSMEs while working out the development model of our cities.
The Prime Minister called upon the Mayors to work on a waste management revenue model. He said converting waste into wealth will benefit the cities immensely. He said it will not only help in contributing towards building a ‘Swachh Bharat’ but also a ‘Swasth Bharat’.
The Prime Minister urged citizens to participate in making their cities better and future-ready. He said that ‘Jan Bhagidari’ will truly take our nation forward towards newer heights. Modi further said we should know the Birthdate or ‘Janm divas’ of our cities and celebrate the day. He said it will give a new identity to our cities.
The Prime Minister also said we need to ensure that the vision of New Urban India should be inclusive of ‘Divyangjans’ under the ‘Sugamya Bharat Abhiyaan’ and our urban infrastructure supports designs that are Divyang-friendly. MModi added PM SVANidhi Yojana is not only empowering street vendors with micro-finances but also focusing on making them 100% digitally reliant & empowered.
The Prime Minister said we should celebrate ‘Nadi Utsav’ every seven days to achieve cleanliness in our cities. He said the Utsav can be about discussing the history of rivers, ‘Gungaan’ of rivers can be done and ‘Kavi Sammelans’ can also be organized. Mr. Modi also asked the Mayors to run programmes related to ‘Azadi ka Marit Mahotsav’ such as freedom struggle themed ‘rangoli’ competitions, Songs competition on freedom struggle and Lullaby (Lori) competition.
The Prime Minister asked Mayors to get in touch with NCC units of the city and create groups to clean statues of the cities and organise speeches on the personalities in the spirit of ‘Azadi Ka Amrit Mahotsav’. He further said Mayors can identify a place in their city and create a monument in sync with the Azadi Ka Amrit Mahotsav through PPP mode.
Referring to the ‘One District One Product’ programme of Uttar Pradesh government, the Prime Minister asked Mayors to push for a unique identity of their cities promoted by some unique product or place in the city.
The Prime Minister also asked Mayors to ensure that LED bulbs are used widely in the streetlights and homes of their cities.
Earlier, Uttar Pradesh Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath said Kashi set off on the path of development in 2014 when the people of Varanasi chose Prime Minister Narendra Modi as their representative. He said Kashi is present in a new avatar today while keeping alive its ancient culture.
After attending the conference Majumder shared his experience with Tripura Times and said attending the Conference is a wonderful experience.
“In the conference, several aspects relating to civic services and amenities were discussed in detail. Ensuring street lights in every pole, beautification of the city, sewerage and waste management system, etc were stressed in the conference. Apart from this bringing simplification and ensuring transparency in Civic service delivery was also focused during the deliberation in the conference”, Dipak Majumder said.
Union Minister for Housing and Urban Affairs Hardeep Singh Puri was also present on the occasion. Mayors from various states across the country are participating in the conference which is being organised by the Department of Urban Development, Uttar Pradesh. The theme of the Conference is “New Urban India”. It has been the constant endeavour of the Prime Minister to ensure ease of living in urban areas.
The government has launched multiple schemes and initiatives to address the issues of dilapidated urban infrastructure and lack of amenities. A special focus of these efforts has been the state of Uttar Pradesh, which has witnessed tremendous progress and transformation of the urban landscape, especially in the last five years.
A 3-day exhibition is also being organized from today to showcase the key achievements of the Centre and Uttar Pradesh government in the sphere of urban development.
