PM Narendra Modi.
Credit: PTI Photo
Hyderabad: As Ayodhya in Uttar Pradesh is getting ready for the consecration of grand temple dedicated to Lord Shri Ram, Prime Minister Narendra Modi in Andhra Pradesh on Tuesday asked the country's taxmen to take inspiration from Lord Ram whom he said is a great symbol of good governance.
Modi on Tuesday inaugurated the new campus of National Academy of Customs, Indirect Taxes & Narcotics (NACIN) at Palasamudram in Sri Sathya Sai District of Andhra Pradesh.
Acknowledging the atmosphere of Ram Bhakti pervading the country, the Prime Minister pointed out that Shri Ram’s inspiration goes beyond devotion. He said that Shri Ram is such a great symbol of good governance that he can be a great inspiration for NACIN too.
Quoting Mahatma Gandhi, the Prime Minister said that the very idea of Ram Rajya is the notion behind true democracy. He highlighted Mahatma Gandhi’s life experience as the reason behind his backing of the Ram Rajya ideology and spoke about a nation where every citizen’s voice is heard and everyone gets their due respect.
“It is said about the citizens of Ram Rajya”, the Prime Minister said quoting a Sanskrit shloka, “Ram Rajya Vasi (citizen), Keep your head high and fight for justice, treat everyone as equal, protect the weak, hold Dharma on the highest level, You are Ram Rajya Vasis”. He underlined that Ram Rajya was established on these four pillars where everyone could walk with their heads held high and with dignity, every citizen is treated as equal, the downtrodden are protected, and Dharma holds paramount importance. “In the 21st century”, the Prime Minister said, “as administrators who enforce the rules and regulations of these modern institutions, you must focus on these four goals and keep them in mind.”
The Prime Minister also mentioned Swami Tulsidas’s description of the tax system in the Ram Rajya. Quoting Ramcharit Manas, the Prime Minister highlighted the welfare aspect of taxation and every paisa of tax received from people would go into the welfare of the people to stimulate prosperity. Further elaborating this PM Modi talked about the tax reforms in the last 10 years. He recalled multiple, non-transparent tax systems of earlier times. “We gave the country a modern system in the form of GST and simplified income tax and introduced faceless assessment. All these reforms have resulted in record tax collection”, the Prime Minister said. “We are returning people’s money through various schemes”, he added.
The Prime Minister also highlighted the special attention paid by his government to the optimum utilization of resources in Ram Rajya. Pointing out the past government which tended to stall, shelve and divert projects causing huge losses to the nation, the Prime Minister drew an analogy to Lord Ram‘s conversation with Bharat cautioning him against such tendencies and said, “I am confident that you complete tasks which cost less and give more benefit without wasting time.” He highlighted that in the last 10 years, the present government has kept the cost in mind and laid emphasis on completing the projects on time.
‘25cr Indians lifted out of poverty’
PM Modi also underlined that the positive results of development works carried out in the nation can be seen as he apprised about the latest report released by NITI Aayog which states that almost 25 crore people have been lifted out of poverty in the last 9 years by the efforts of the present government.
Calling it a historic and unprecedented achievement, especially in a nation where slogans for eradicating poverty have been raised for decades, the Prime Minister said that it is the result of the government’s priority for the welfare of the poor since coming to power in 2014.
The Prime Minister expressed the belief that the poor of this country have the potential to defeat poverty if they are given the means and resources.
He also credited the reduction in poverty to the rise of the neo-middle class and the proliferation of the middle class.
NACIN in 500 acres
Spread in 500 acres, NACIN is the apex institution of the Government of India for capacity building in the field of Indirect Taxation (Customs, Central Excise and Goods and Services Tax) and Narcotics Control Administration.
The national-level world-class training institute will impart training to the officials of the Indian Revenue Service (Custom & Indirect Taxes) as well as to the central allied services, state governments & partner nations.
With the addition of this new campus, the NACIN will focus on the use of new-age technologies such as Augmented & Virtual Reality, Blockchain as well as Artificial Intelligence and other emerging Technologies for training and capacity building.
Modi visited Veerabhadra temple
PM Modi earlier visited Veerabhadra Temple in Lepakshi and heard the verses of Ranganatha Ramayan. The Prime Minister participated in Bhajan Keertan with the devotees. Noting the belief that Ram Jatayu Samvad took place nearby, the Prime Minister said he is undergoing an 11-day special anushthan before the Pran Pratishtha at the temple at Ayodhya Dham. He expressed gratitude for being blessed at the temple during this pious period.