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G.D. Agrawal death: Agrawals slam Modi for ‘exploiting’ Ganga river
Mumbai, Oct 15 (IANS) The Agrawal community on Monday slammed the government of Prime Minister Narendra Modi for “exploiting” the Ganga river issue for political purposes and not fulfilling its promise to clean up the holy river in the past over four years.
In a letter to Modi, Akhil Bharatiya Agrawal Sammelan (ABAS) National Secretary Summan R. Agrawal said that engineer-turned-environmentalist G.D. Agrawal died on October 9 after a 111-day-long protest for the cause of Ganga.
During his fast, he wrote three letters to Modi “but the government didn’t feel important to respond” to them. But after Agrawal’s death, Modi, all Ministers and the government tweeted about his great contribution to nature and environment.
“If the government is so anguished about Agarwal’s death, why didn’t the PM meet him at least once and accept his genuine demands, or at least, respond to any of his letters? Why does the Modi government show such hypocrisy and double standards,” Agrawal asked.
She pointed out that in his letters to the Prime Minister, the late Agrawal expressed confidence that after Modi took power in 2014, concrete steps would be taken to clean up the Ganga but later realized that nothing was done in the past four-and-a-half years.
These expectations were raised after Modi focused his entire election agenda in 2014 on the issue of ‘Maa Ganga’ and campaigning that ‘Na main aaya hoo, Na hi bheja gaya hoon; Mujhe to Maa Ganga ne bulaya haia’.
“Why ‘Maa Ganga’ didn’t call this self-proclaimed son Narendra Modi after his rise to the throne as PM in 2014? Modi again realized he has a ‘Maa Ganga only during Assembly elections of Uttar Pradesh in 2017,” Agrawal said in her letter.
On the contrary, the late Agrawal’s letters mentioned how former Prime Minister Manmohan Singh had taken cognizance of his several fasts and decided to stop or cancel all activities in a major project for the sake of Ganga.
“I would like to ask the Modi government, why the Agrawal community is constantly being ignored over the years… What happened to your favourite election war-cry – ‘Sabka Sath, Sabka Vikas’? We, the Agrawal community, were expecting at least full state honours to (the late) Agarwal, the proud son of the community, but he was denied that too,” said Agrawal.
She said the entire 10-crore strong Agrawal community was “feeling orphaned due to his death” and warned that they will remember and express their sentiments in the 2019 elections.
–IANS
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Dr. Abhishek Verma Dedicates a Shelter in Memory of His Mother, Veena Verma, at KGMU; Inaugurated by Daughter Nicolle Verma
World-renowned business tycoon Dr. Abhishek Verma has supported Foodman Vishal Singh’s Hunger-Free World mission. In memory of his mother, Late Veena Verma, who was a 3 term Rajya Sabha MP.
Dr. Verma dedicated a state-of-the-art free permanent shelter for the attendants of patients at KGMU Medical University, Lucknow, under the aegis of Vijay Shree Foundation. His daughter, Nicolle Verma, inaugurated the shelter.
During the event, Foodman Vishal Singh honored Nicolle Verma by presenting her with a memento. Mrs. Nidhi Sharma and Avantika Yadav, associated with the organization, welcomed her with garlands. Following this, Nicolle Verma distributed essential items to the attendants and also handed out fruits. She became emotional remembering her grandmother on her birth anniversary.
On this occasion, she also inaugurated the “Veena Verma Sevalaya” in memory of her grandmother, Veena Verma, to serve the attendants. She expressed, “I feel proud that my family is engaged in nation-building as well as social service. Today, in collaboration with Vijay Shree Foundation founder Foodman Vishal Singh Ji, I feel immensely proud to dedicate this shelter for the poor, helpless, and needy attendants of patients battling serious illnesses like cancer. I am honored to be associated with the Hunger-Free World Mission for humanity.”
Inspired by the continuous humanitarian service provided by Vijay Shree Foundation over the past 17 years, Nicolle Verma donated 10 lakh rupees to support the cause. The purpose of this donation is to ensure that services continue for the needy attendants of patients suffering from severe illnesses in hospitals, as facilitated by Foodman Vishal Singh.
It is noteworthy that Dr. Abhishek Verma’s family has a legacy of public and philanthropic service. They are helping millions to carry forward the values and service work of their parents. On the occasion of his mother’s birth anniversary, Dr. Abhishek Verma dedicated this state-of-the-art permanent shelter at Lucknow Medical College to serve the attendants of patients through the Vijay Shree Foundation.
Supporting Foodman Vishal Singh’s Hunger-Free World mission, Dr. Abhishek Verma assured that he would continually support keeping this flame of humanity alive. He also promised to assist in providing medicines to the helpless patients.
Continuing her grandmother’s legacy of service, Nicolle Verma personally served food to the needy patients and attendants. She said, “It is our good fortune to have received the joy of doing this noble work today through Foodman Vishal Singh. I have taken another step forward in carrying my family’s values and cooperation by joining hands with the Vijay Shree Foundation. My father taught me to serve and help the needy, and I feel happy when I bring a smile to someone’s face.”
On the birth anniversary of the late Veena Verma, the event organizer, Vijay Shree Foundation founder Foodman Vishal Singh, said, “We feel proud and happy that Dr. Abhishek Verma, a globally renowned business tycoon, has extended his support to uplift our country from the hunger index. Today, on his mother’s birth anniversary, he inaugurated a state-of-the-art permanent shelter at Lucknow Medical College, which will always be helpful for the needy attendants of patients. It is a pleasure for me and the organization to receive the affection of Mr. Verma.”
The event was attended by General Manager Verma Family Office Hemant Garg, Sonu Rajput, and the organization’s volunteers, including Sandeep Singh, Parmeshwar Ji, Prashant Rao Gautam, Balram Singh, Ramesh Chaudhary, Suman, Jeetu, Anil, Suraj, Vinay, Manish Bhadauria, Manas Mehrotra, Vivek, Apurv, Happy, and others.