Cherish the most beautiful gift of freedom: Neiphiu Rio

India’s 75 years of Independence celebrated in Kohima

Our Correspondent
Kohima | March 12

Nagaland Chief Minister (CM) Neiphiu Rio today appealed the citizens to ‘deeply cherish the most beautiful gift of freedom’, and to continue to work in making the nation even stronger and greater in every respect with renewed vigour and passion.

Rio said that India at the dawn of Independence had many overwhelming challenges before it.

“Economically weakened as a result of the colonial rule, with millions living in abject poverty, stagnant agriculture, poor industrial base, weak infrastructure, existence of huge social disparities among the people, and many such formidable changes confronted us,” Rio said in his address at the state level celebration of India’s 75 years of Independence (Azadi Ka Amrut Mahotsav) in Kohima on March 12.

As the biggest democracy in the world even then, he said “we had big dreams and with unfailing zeal and attitude we embarked on a journey which has seen us overcoming all the obstacles on the path and making spectacular strides in every sphere.”

He said that India has lifted hundreds of millions of people out of poverty, and successfully created a vibrant and large economy which compares well with the biggest economies of the globe, built infrastructure which rivals the best in the world, has become a formidable space and nuclear power, and has one of the largest military in the world.

Over the decades, Rio said, we have also been able to deepen and strengthen the democratic processes and foundations in the country, and by empowering, particularly the marginalized communities and sections of our society, we have brought about significant social and economic equality amongst our people.

Rio said that State of Nagaland which came into existence, about 16 years after India’s Independence, has also been moving shoulder to shoulder with the rest in order to make all those dreams a reality.

“We now boast of very good literacy levels, the quality of our human resources are second to none, the road network over the decades have grown substantiality to cover every nook and corner of the state, the availability of power is there across the state, the health sector has seen tremendous improvement, in fact, we have made progress in every area,” Rio said.

Also stating that while Nagaland State and the entire nation have made substantial progress and some remarkable achievements, Rio said that there still remains a lot of ground to cover to be considered a developed state.

“As part of the celebration, we need to double our efforts to further our developmental goals and ensure that no individual is deprived of his fundamental rights,” Rio said.

The CM also mentioned that the State government is striving for an early political solution, “a matter intricately linked to our identity and history,” and reminded about the life and the message of Mahatma Gandhi who always advocated peace, non-violence and purity of means. 

We should accordingly be guided by such ideals, he said.