My Fellow Citizens,
On the eve of our 64th Independence Day, I extend my warmest greetings to all of you
from all walks of life, living in India and overseas. I convey special greetings to the brave
personnel of our Armed Forces and the Para-military forces who guard our frontiers and to
our Central and State police, as well as our internal security forces. I also compliment
every citizen of this country whose hard work, productive prowess and enterprising zeal
have put India among the front ranks of the nations of the world. I convey my heartfelt
condolences to all those who have lost their loved ones, suffered injuries and whose
properties have been destroyed in the recent cloud burst in Leh.
Dear Citizens,
Every year, we celebrate our Independence Day with great fervour as well as joy and
justifiably so, as it commemorates that day, when after many years of subjugation, our
country gained its freedom. Indeed, in the annals of history, 15th of August 1947 will
always be remembered as a day of an extraordinary accomplishment, of when India won
its freedom with unparalleled fortitude and unique means. Under the leadership of
Mahatma Gandhi, our movement for attaining freedom through Ahimsa and Satyagraha
spread throughout the country, inspiring people in a manner rarely seen. Millions and
millions of our men and women, willingly and enthusiastically responded to his call. They
united to become an immense force that defeated the mightiest colonial power. Free India,
was thus born.
As citizens of free India, we must reflect on the values and principles which were in the
minds and hearts of those who fought and sacrificed for our freedom. They drew
inspiration from the values nurtured in the country through millennia. Pandit Jawaharlal
Nehru once described Gandhiji as, embodying the old spirit of India, who held aloft the
torch of freedom. Gandhijis thoughts and his life were truly an expression of the
philosophy of our ancient civilization in which peace and harmony, non-violence and truth,
human dignity and compassion were given great prominence. Are we now forgetting these
principles? Are we overlooking them? No, we should not. These are eternal values, which
have sustained our nation, our society and also each one of us as individuals. Gandhijis
thinking continues to have deep influence and is of increasing relevance in the world, with
2nd October, his birthday, being observed every year as the International Day of
Non-Violence.
Dear Citizens,
