 "Narendra Modi")
Taking pot shots at those mocking at him for not doing "big things", Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Sunday assured the people that he would not allow the country walk to on the wrong path.
"People sitting in air-conditioned rooms in Delhi criticise me for not doing 'big things'. Previous governments did big things and took huge advantage of them. But I will not commit the same sin or allow the country to walk on the wrong path," Modi said at a public rally in this Karnataka textile town, 260 km from Bengaluru.
Thanking the people for coming in large numbers to the 'Vikas Parva' rally, organised by the party's Karnataka unit to mark the two years of the BJP-led NDA government, Modi said those in Delhi had no idea why people flock to his public meetings in thousands even in sweltering summer heat.
"When people like you give me so much love and affection, there is no need for me to walk on the wrong path. My government has also decided to free the country from middlemen," he said in his 40-minute speech in Hindi.
Giving an account of his two year rule, Modi said his government had abolished over a thousand archaic and outdated laws to free the people from legal burden, while surveys have revealed that the government's biggest achievement was the 'Swacch Bharat' campaign.
Also citing the Pradhan Mantri Suraksha Bima Yojana, he said: "You don't even get a cup of tea for Re.1, which I used to get when I sold tea. But people can get life insurance schemes at Re.1."
Before the public meeting, Modi launched the Ujjwala Yojana scheme to provide cooking gas connections to the poor families in Karnataka, while noting that more than three crore families have got cooking gas connections in last one year.
"Under the scheme, we will provide cooking gas connection without security deposit to 50 million women from BPL (below poverty line) households across the country in the next three years," he said.
Asserting that the scheme would improve health of women as they won't have to inhale smoke from firewood for cooking food, Modi said studies have shown that fumes from firewood were equivalent to smoke from about 400 burning cigarettes.
"Cooking on gas is not only economical and beneficial to women's health, but also helps us to conserve forest wood, which is still used for cooking food in rural areas," he said.
Expressing gratitude to 1.13 crore consumers across the country for surrendering cooking gas subsidy till date, Modi said there was a dramatic change in mindsets, as evident from the overwhelming response to his appeal for this purpose.
"People from even middle class are coming forward to surrender the subsidy given on cooking gas cylinders. Their gesture is helping the government in providing subsidised cooking gas connection to women in poor households," he said.
Besides BJP state unit president and former BJP chief minister B.S. Yeddyurappa, central ministers from the state Ananth Kumar, D.V. Sadanada Gowda and Siddeshwara, party leaders in the assembly and council, Jagdish Shettar and K.S. Eshwarappa, respectively, were also present.
