Must unite society against divisive forces': PM Modi calls for collective efforts against 'societal ills

Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Friday urged spiritual and cultural organisations to work towards national development, while calling for collective efforts to help address emerging societal ills and unite people against divisive forces and contribute to India's goal of becoming a developed nation by 2047.

Inaugurating the Chinmaya Amrit Mahotsav Global Sammelan at Bharat Mandapam in New Delhi, PM Modi linked the goal of India becoming a developed nation by 2047 with the centenary of the Chinmaya Mission, which will also fall that year.

"Over the decades, times have changed, new challenges have emerged, and new societal ills have surfaced. Today, the responsibility to solve them rests upon all of us," Modi said.

"We must unite society against divisive forces. We must inspire citizens towards self-reliance, and we must connect every individual to the vision of a developed India by 2047. For these objectives, we must become even more proactive," he added.

The three-day gathering, which marks 75 years of the mission, has brought together more than 9,000 participants from India and abroad.

Modi said he had spent the past 25 years serving the nation as head of government, first as Gujarat chief minister and later as prime minister, while carrying forward the vision of leaders such as Chinmayananda.

He said the Chinmaya Mission, founded by Swami Chinmayananda in 1951 to make the wisdom of Vedanta and the Bhagavad Gita accessible to all, was not merely an institution but a thought. He credited the spiritual leader with contributing to India's cultural and spiritual renaissance by taking the country's philosophical traditions to the public.

Recalling his association with Chinmayananda, Modi described his interaction with a holobot of the spiritual leader at the event as an emotional experience. The technology uses a realistic three-dimensional holographic digital representation of a person.

"The feeling in my heart as I arrived here today has been brought to life even more through modern technology. Having the privilege of seeing revered Gurudev Swami Chinmayananda Ji in this form and interacting with his holobot made me feel as if I had been transported back 33 years in time," he said.

The PM recalled meeting Chinmayananda in Chicago in February-March 1993, when he invited the spiritual leader to the centenary celebrations of the Parliament of the World's Religions. Chinmayananda accepted the invitation and travelled to the US to encourage people to participate in the event. However, he died in San Diego on August 3, weeks before the gathering began in Chicago on September 11.

"When the Parliament was held in September, we all deeply missed Gurudev," Modi said.

The prime minister said youth empowerment and the building of a strong India were central to Chinmayananda's vision. He also praised young people associated with the mission who travelled nearly 40,000 km over about 300 days, reaching more than 100,000 people.

"I congratulate the entire team for this phenomenal effort," he said.

Modi said the mission had nurtured hundreds of thousands of young people who were acting as cultural ambassadors of India and passing on Indian values to the next generation.

The prime minister highlighted the role of education in preparing young people for the future, citing the National Education Policy (NEP) as an effort to integrate Indian knowledge traditions with modern science and emerging technologies.

"To ensure that our education system meets the needs of a 'New India', we introduced the National Education Policy (NEP). This new policy accords high importance to Indian Knowledge Systems, instruction in mother tongues, modern science, and cutting-edge technology," he said.

He also credited the Chinmaya Mission's educational institutions and cultural activities with introducing Indian values to younger generations. More than 100 institutions run by the mission, he said, combine modern education with Indian values.

Modi recalled Chinmayananda's support for the Vivekananda Rock Memorial in Kanyakumari, saying the spiritual leader made the first financial contribution to the project. He also highlighted the development of cultural and religious sites, including Kashi Vishwanath Dham, the Ram temple in Ayodhya, and centres at Kedarnath and Badrinath.