Chief Minister Professor (Dr.) Manik Saha on Monday paid tributes to Deendayal Upadhyaya on his birth anniversary in a programme organized by the department of Information and Cultural Affairs at Rabindra Satabarshiki Bhawan.

Speaking on the occasion   Chief Minister Professor (Dr.) Manik Saha said that after independence, it was Deendayal Upadhyaya who drew the attention of the government towards realities of life ensuring upliftment of the poor and downtrodden. “Today, the entire country is remembering Pandit Deendayal Upadhyaya ji, his ideas of ‘integral humanism’ and ‘Antyodaya’ have been at the centre of the BJP’s ideology and the driving force behind party’s good governance. Deendayal ji always stressed that progress should not be measured on the basis of the rich becoming more successful but when the poor and downtrodden get upliftment.”  Pandit Deendayal Upadhyaya was dedicated to serving the country for all his life, and his personality and work will always inspire people, he added.

“Pandit Deendayal Upadhyaya was a beacon of light who talked about Antyodaya and who had made the welfare of the person sitting in the last row the agenda of political thinking. The effect of his thinking is visible today. Today, the world is witnessing the power of integral humanism,” he remarked.

The contribution of Pandit Deendayal Upadhyaya Ji to make India better as a country and society inspires generations. ”Time has proved that his vision was futuristic. Pandit Deendayal Upadhyaya Ji has a major contribution in whatever is happening today to build India into a global leader of the 21st century,” he added.

The BJP-led Tripura government is working for overall development of the people of the state. Tripura has created a model of ‘good governance and protection of people’ under the leadership of Prime Minister Narendra Modi and the people of the state would have to carry forward the tradition, he added.

The Narendra Modi government scaled up various welfare schemes keeping the poor in focus and expedited their implementation. The Modi government scaled up schemes and enhanced speed to achieve targets so that they reached the last person in society, he added.

Born in Mathura in 1916, Upadhyaya joined the RSS and was a co-founder of the Bharatiya Jana Sangh, the BJP’s progenitor.

Former Deputy Chief Minister Jishnu Dev Varma, Secretary of Information and Cultural Affairs PK Chakraborty, Director of Information and Cultural Affairs Bimbisar Bhattacharya and other dignitaries were present.