EVERY Indian is full of pride seeing the new Parliament House, Prime Minister Narendra Modi said on May 28, addressing dignitaries inside the new building, which he inaugurated earlier in the day.
“From Panchayat Bhawan to Sansad bhawan, our inspiration is the development of our country and its people. It also gives me immense satisfaction when I think about the construction of homes for four crore poor people and 11 crore toilets in the country in the last nine years,” he said.
“When we talk about modern facilities in the new Parliament, I feel content we have constructed over four lakh kilometres of roads to connect villages in the country,” added the Prime Minister.
PM Modi was confident that the new building will become a means of realising the dreams of our freedom fighters and will witness the sunrise of a self-reliant India. “This new building will see the fulfilment of the resolutions of a developed India,” he added.
Underling the need for a new Parliament building, the Prime Minister pointed out that India’s population was growing so was the need for new people’s representatives. “The Government had to see that the number of seats and MPs will increase in coming time. That’s why a new Parliament was the need of the hour,” he said.
The PM unveiled a plaque to mark the inauguration of the new building. He also installed the sacred ‘Sengol’ in the Lok Sabha chamber, next to the Speaker’s chair, after performing puja. He was handed over the historic ‘Sengol’ by Adheenams before it was installed in the new Parliament building.
Stating that India is not only a democratic country but also the mother of democracy, PM Modi said that the new building will witness the rise of a self-reliant India. He also released a special commemorative postage stamp and a Rs 75 coin to mark the inauguration.
In the great Chola Empire in ancient India, ‘Sengol’ was considered a symbol of the path of duty, the path of service and the path of the nation. “It is our good fortune that we have been able to restore the pride of the holy ‘Sengol’. Whenever proceedings start in this House, the ‘Sengol’ will inspire us,” PM Modi said.
During the inauguration ceremony, messages from President Droupadi Murmu and Vice-President Jagdeep Dhankhar were read out by Rajya Sabha Deputy Chairman Harivansh.
The ceremony began with traditional ‘puja’ amid Vedic rituals, which lasted an hour. Lok Sabha Speaker Om Birla was also present during the puja along with Union ministers and state chief ministers.
The four-storey building of the new Parliament House has been constructed at an estimated cost of Rs. 970 crore. It has been designed by Ahmedabad-based HCP Design, Planning and Management; and constructed by Tata Projects.
