Union Minister of State for Information and Broadcasting L Murugan on Thursday said Prime Minister Narendra Modi had helped lift 25 crore people out of poverty over the last 12 years.
He was speaking at a lamp-lighting programme held at the Doordarshan office campus in Chennai to mark Modi’s 76th birthday, which was observed across the country on September 17. The celebration this year included lighting an “Aasirvatha Deepam” (blessing lamp).
Murugan, along with Tamil Nadu BJP president Nainar Nagendran, former Governor Tamilisai Soundararajan and textile trader Nalli Kuppusamy, participated in the ceremony.
In his address, Murugan recalled Modi’s tenure as Gujarat Chief Minister, citing the cleaning of the Sabarmati river and the implementation of the Narmada dam project to improve water availability for villages.
He also said Modi would realise former President A P J Abdul Kalam’s vision of India becoming a global power by 2047, and added that the lamp was lit with prayers for the Prime Minister’s long life.
