The Independence Day celebrations started with a special flag hoisting ceremony along with a speech that inspired all in attendance to pledge and to actively participate in protecting and preserving Mother India. A special, heartfelt tribute was paid to the freedom-fighters and forefathers of our nation.
Inspired by Pujya Swamiji’s vision of Clean, Green and Serene India the Parmarth Rishikumars (students of the Parmarth Gurukul), like on every special holiday, took the Independence Day as an opportunity to demonstrate their relentless commitment in serving our nation. They marched into the neighborhood and the adjoining forest, digging out the heaps of trash and plastic, which are not only an aesthetic insult but also contribute significantly to the pollution of the sacred waterways. The Rishikumars cleaned up the heavily polluted route, up to the Neelkanth Temple, which remained strewn with trash after the recent Kanwad Mela.
It was exhilarating and invigorating to hear similar ideology of a Clean, Green and Serene India being reiterated and emphasized by the Hon’ble Prime Minister of India in his maiden, yet thought-provoking Independence Day speech. He emphasized the importance of cleaning our sacred land of trash, ensuring sanitation and basic facilities of toilets to everyone. He was also very crystal about protecting India’s divine feminine – in the form of the girl child and Mother Ganga – which is the necessity of the hour. He said the key to ensuring that India rises and plays a key role in bringing peace, harmony and sustainability to the world, is that every Indian needs to think global but act local.