Our festivals show unity in diversity in country: PM Modi

New Delhi, Mar 30 (PTI) Prime Minister Narendra Modi said on Sunday that various festivals being celebrated today and to be observed in the coming days are a pointer to the spirit of unity pervading India’s diversity and asked people to continue to strengthen this feeling.

In his monthly Mann ki Baat broadcast, he said various states are celebrating their traditional new year on Sunday and many others will be celebrating in the coming days.

“Today the festival of Ugadi is being celebrated with great fervour in Karnataka, Andhra Pradesh, Telangana. Today itself, Gudi Padwa is being celebrated in Maharashtra. In our country full of diversity, during the next few days, in different states, ‘Rongali Bihu’ will be celebrated in Assam, ‘Poila Boishakh’ in Bengal, ‘Navreh’ in Kashmir. Similarly, between 13th and 15th April, there will be joyous celebration of festivals in different parts of the country,” he said.

There is an atmosphere of excitement about this too and the festival of Eid is also there, Modi added.

Noting that the coming month is of festivals and of festivities, the prime minister extended his greetings to the people of the country.

“These festivals of ours may be in different regions, but they show how unity is woven into the diversity of India. We have to keep reinforcing this spirit of unity, on our way ahead,” the prime minister said.

He noted that summer vacation in schools will also fall in a few weeks and said the long days of summer are a time for students to develop new hobbies and polish their skills.

He urged those offering various activities for students to use the hashtag of “myholidays” and students and parents to share their experiences with “holidaymemories” hashtag.

In his address, Modi stressed on the “catch the rain” campaign and asserted over 11 billion cubic metre water has been saved in the last seven to eight years through such practices.

“By conserving raindrops, we can save a lot of water from getting wasted.

Over the last few years, under this campaign, unprecedented tasks related to water conservation have been undertaken in many parts of the country. I will give you an interesting figure. During the last 7-8 years, over 11 billion cubic metres of water has been conserved through newly built tanks, ponds and other water recharge structures,” Modi said

“You must now be wondering how much 11 billion cubic metres of water is? You must have seen the pictures of the water that gets accumulated in the Bhakra Nangal dam. This water forms the Govind Sagar lake. The length of this lake is more than 90 kilometres. Even in this lake, not more than 9-10 billion cubic metres of water can be conserved,” he said.

And the people of the country, through their tiny efforts, have managed to conserve 11 billion cubic metres of water, Modi said, lauding such efforts.

The prime minister urged people to join such efforts at the community level.

Noting that along with fitness, keeping a count is also becoming a habit, Modi cited the example of people keeping a count of the number of steps taken in a day, of the number of calories eaten in a day and of the number of calories burnt.

“Amidst all these counts, another countdown is about to begin. The countdown to the International Yoga Day. Now less than 100 days are left for Yoga Day. If you have not yet included yoga in your life, do it now -it is not too late yet,” he said.

Noting that the first International Yoga Day was celebrated 10 years ago on June 21, 2015, Modi said now this day has taken the shape of a grand festival of yoga.

“This is such a priceless gift from India to humanity, which is going to be very useful for future generations. The theme of Yoga Day 2025 has been kept as ‘Yoga for One Earth One Health’. That is, we wish to make the whole world healthy through yoga,” the prime minister said.

Modi said it is a matter of pride for all the people that today the curiosity about yoga and traditional medicine is rising, all over the world.

A large number of youths are adopting yoga and Ayurveda as an excellent medium for wellness, he asserted.

“For example, there is a South American country, Chile. Ayurveda is rapidly becoming popular there. Last year, during my visit to Brazil, I met the President of Chile. We had a lot of discussions about the popularity of Ayurveda,” he said.

“I have come to know about a team named ‘Somos India’. In Spanish, it means ‘We are India’. This team has been promoting yoga and Ayurveda for almost a decade. Their focus is on treatment as well as educational programmes.

“They are also getting information related to Yog and Ayurveda translated into the Spanish language,” he said.

Highlighting the importance of staying connected with one’s roots, Modi said, “When we stay connected to our roots, no matter how big the storm, it cannot uproot us.”

Just imagine, about 200 years ago, many people from India went to Mauritius as indentured labourers and nobody knew what would happen next but with the passage of time, they settled there, he said.

They carved a niche for themselves in Mauritius and preserved their heritage and remained connected to their roots, he said.

“Mauritius is not the only such example. Last year when I went to Guyana, the Chowtaal performance there impressed me a lot,” the PM recalled.

Noting that some flowers beautify the house, some dissolve in perfume and spread fragrance everywhere, Modi talked about another journey of flowers.

“You certainly must have heard about Mahua flowers. People of our villages and especially the tribal community know very well about its importance.The journey of Mahua flowers in many parts of the country has now embarked upon a new path. Cookies are being made from Mahua flowers in Chhindwara district of Madhya Pradesh,” he said.

These cookies are becoming very popular due to the efforts of four sisters of Rajakhoh village, Modi pointed out.

Talking about the Krishna Kamal flowers found in large numbers around the Statue of Unity in Ekta Nagar, Modi said these flowers have become the centre of attraction in Arogya Van, Ekta Nursery, Vishwa Van and Miyawaki forest of Ekta Nagar.