The Finance Minister was joined by other BJP MLAs on her two-day visit to Odisha, as they administered the 'Panch Pran' pledge to a gathering at the Central Sanskrit University and took part in the 'Meri Maati, Mere Desh' campaign.
The Union Finance Minister, Nirmala Sitharaman on Thursday conducted the ‘Panch Pran’ pledge to the assembly at the Central Sanskrit University and said that every Indian should be free from a mindset still slave to the British Rule. "Prime Minister Narendra Modi has emphasised the need to eliminate any trace of colonial mindset," she said, adding that India can further develop and become self-reliant only by following the pledge.
The gathering at the varsity read out the Panch Pran, together with the Finance Minister-"We pledge to make India developed and self-reliant by 2047, we pledge to remove any trace of colonial mindset, we pledge to celebrate our heritage, we pledge to strengthen unity and respect those who protect the country and we pledge to perform the duties of a citizen.”
Dharmendra Pradhan, the Union Education Minister, also attended the event and said, "Modi has launched the 'Meri Mati, Mera Desh' campaign to honour our martyred bravehearts. I thank all of you for taking the pledge for a better India."
Sitaraman then collected ‘maati’ in the ‘Amrit Kalash’, under 'Meri Maati, Mera Desh' campaign in presence of Pradhan, at Biraharekrushnapur, known as the birthplace of renowned freedom fighter Jayee Rajguru in Puri district.
The Finance Minister followed it with honouring the family members of martyrs and freedom fighters in Puri district under the campaign. Sitharaman had also visited the Jagannath temple to offer prayers to the sibling deities in the 12th century shrine. She was accompanied by
Pradhan, Sambit Patra, local MLAs — Jayanta Sarangi and Lalitendu Bidyadhar Mohapatra —, and spent more than 30 minutes inside the temple.
Sitharaman also visited sand artist Sudarshan Pattnaik’s sand art session on ‘Meri Maati, Mere Desh’. Sitharaman and Pradhan together took part in a book launch and join the inauguration ceremony of the 20th National CA Conference later that day in Bhubhaneshwar.