New Delhi, Feb 5 (NationPress) In a response to the Motion of Thanks regarding the President's address in the Rajya Sabha on Thursday, Prime Minister Narendra Modi criticized the Congress governments of the past for their misguided priorities, asserting that Nehru ji and Indira ji perceived the populace as challenges. He remarked that the rigid policies in place rendered the Planning Commission unapproachable for citizens.

During his speech, PM Modi referenced a historical statement made by former Prime Minister Indira Gandhi that highlighted the ineffective governance and stagnation in policies that encumbered the Planning Commission of the Nehru era.

He shared excerpts from Indira Gandhi's discourse, which illustrated a clear disconnection between the policies of the planning body and the needs of residents in hilly regions.

The quotations were derived from a compilation of Indira Gandhi's speeches named “Selected Speeches and Writings of Indira Gandhi”.

In one of her addresses, Indira Gandhi expressed, “For an extended period, I faced challenges with the Planning Commission, as they were reluctant to develop separate plans for the hill areas.”

“I traveled to Himachal Pradesh and had to trek on foot, covering 20 to 22 kilometers daily over ten days. Upon my return, I realized that our workers required not a Jeep but a mule so that their burdens could be transported. I was informed, ‘No, we provide funding for a Jeep but cannot allocate even a fraction of that amount for a mule, as the policy dictates a Jeep,’” as quoted in the book.

Furthermore, she remarked, “There were no roads. So, what use was a Jeep? Yet, the Planning Commission insisted: ‘Jeep or nothing!’ This mindset has persisted across many ministries and public sector units.”

On Thursday, PM Modi utilized these comments from former PM Indira Gandhi to illustrate that public welfare had not been a priority for past Congress administrations. He noted that the Nehru-era Planning Commission was plagued by policy rigidity, paralysis, and bureaucracy, which are the very reasons the NDA government abolished the panel.

The Prime Minister also referred to Indira Gandhi's remarks during her visit to Iran, in which she stated that Pandit Jawaharlal Nehru perceived the nation as having 35 crore problems, while she encountered 71 crore issues during her tenure.

PM Modi questioned the rationale behind any leader viewing the citizens of India as problems, asserting that with 140 crore individuals today, the nation has 140 crore solutions.

This fundamental shift in perspective, he explained, distinguishes his administration from Congress, focusing on empowerment and opportunities instead of viewing the populace as a burden.