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Stepping up the attack on the Congress, Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Wednesday accused the party of ignoring BR Ambedkar's contribution to the country and always giving the credit to one family. The PM's comments, made during an event to lay the foundation stone of the Ken-Betwa river linking project in Madhya Pradesh, came amid a row over Union Home Minister Amit Shah's remarks on BR Ambedkar, which have attracted criticism from the Congress and other opposition parties.
Speaking at the event in Khajuraho, PM Modi also said only nations with well-managed water resources can make progress and that Ambedkar's vision played a significant role in strengthening the country's water resources.
"Baba Saheb Ambedkar's vision and farsightedness have contributed significantly to strengthening India's water resources, water management, and dam construction. Ambedkar ji played a crucial role in the development of major river valley projects in India. His efforts are also behind the formation of the current Central Water Commission," the PM said
But the Congress party, he said, never paid heed to the country's growing need for water conservation and did not recognise the efforts of the architect of the Constitution as a water conservationist. Congress and governance do not go together, the PM emphasised, adding that past Congress governments delayed projects for 35-40 years after laying their foundation stones.
"The major challenge of the 21st century is water security. In the 21st century, only those countries that have adequate water resources with proper management will move forward," he said.
The PM's attack follows similar scathing remarks against the Congress over the Ambedkar issue by Maharashtra, Uttar Pradesh and Assam Chief Ministers Devendra Fadnavis, Yogi Adityanath and Himanta Biswa Sarma.
The Congress has hit back, accusing the BJP of being hostile to democracy and the Constitution.
"The BJP and the Sangh have always opposed the makers of the Constitution, the protectors of the Constitution, the givers of freedom, and the protectors of democracy. All these facts clearly indicate that the Sangh, BJP, and their affiliated organisations cannot tolerate democracy and the Constitution in any form," Congress leader Surendra Rajput said.
The controversy was ignited last week, when Mr Shah said in Parliament that taking Ambedkar's name had become a fashion.
"Abhi ek fashion ho gaya hai - Ambedkar, Ambedkar, Ambedkar. Itna naam agar bhagwan ka lete to saat janmon tak swarg mil jata (It has become a fashion to say Ambedkar, Ambedkar, Ambedkar'. If they took God's name so many times, they would have got a place in heaven)," he said.
Solar Project Inaugurated Too
The PM also inaugurated the Omkareshwar Floating Solar Project in Madhya Pradesh's Khandwa district virtually, and laid the foundation stone of the Daudhan Irrigation Project, which is part of the Ken-Betwa river linking project.
Union Water Resources Minister CR Patil and Madhya Pradesh Chief Minister Mohan Yadav handed over two 'kalash' (urns) containing water from the Betwa and Ken rivers, to the Prime Minister, who poured it over a model of the project.
The PM said the river linking project will open new doors of prosperity and happiness in the Bundelkhand region.
Officials said nearly 44 lakh people in ten districts of Madhya Pradesh and 21 lakh people in Uttar Pradesh will get drinking water under the project, which is estimated to cost Rs 44,605 crore. They added that nearly 7.18 lakh agricultural families in 2,000 villages will benefit from the project, which will also generate 103 MW of hydropower and 27 MW of solar energy.
PM Modi also released a commemorative stamp and a coin in memory of former Prime Minister Atal Bihari Vajpayee, whose birth centenary was on Wednesday. The Vajpayee government had proposed river linking as a solution for the country's irrigation needs.
PM Modi also performed the groundbreaking ceremony for the construction of 1,153 'Atal Gram Sewa Sadans', estimated to cost Rs 437 crore, at the Khajuraho event.