By Our Correspondent
BHUBANESWAR:The ever-remembered Iron Man Sardar Vallabhbhai Patel was a key architect of the formation of the Great India Year. His role in merging the states ruled by 565 kings with India was unforgettable. He started his mission from the Nilgiri hills of Odisha. When the talk of unity, integrity, and sovereignty comes up in the whole country, then the words of Sardar Patel come to mind.
To be inspired by his principles and ideals and to awaken the sense of unity, patriotism, and civic duty among the youth, his birth anniversary is being celebrated across the country from October 31. Organized in three phases, the final phase of this program began on November 26. In the last phase, a 150-kilometer walk was organized from Karamsad, the birthplace of Sardar Patel, Gujarat, to the Virat Statue in Kevadia. Out of the 4.5 crore people of Odisha, 74 walkers got the opportunity to participate in this program. This is a matter of pride for our state. In this regard, no matter how much we praise these walkers, it will be insufficient, said State President Shri Manmohan Samal.
At the felicitation program organized for the youth marchers of the Yuva Morcha at the state office, Shri Samal said that this year is a memorable year for all of us. This year, we are celebrating the 125th birth anniversary of Dr. Harekrushna Mahatma, 100 years of Atal Bihari Vajpayee and Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh, 150 years of Vande Mataram, Bhagwan Birsamunda and Sardar Patel.
This has filled all of us with enthusiasm and inspiration. The youth will have a major contribution in the dream that the eminent Prime Minister Shri Narendra Modi has of building a developed India by 2047 and a developed Odisha by 2036. Based on the experience they have gained by participating in this march, Shri Samal challenged the youth to take up the cause of nation building.
On this occasion, State Vice President Dr. Yatin Mohanty said that the experience of 74 Odisha pilgrims who joined the walk in Karamsad will be a thrill in their minds and will be remembered for a lifetime. The walk was organized at 64 places in Odisha in honor of Sardar Patel. A total of 448 kilometers were covered here. More than 4 lakh people in Odisha participated in it. The main purpose of this program was to remember the history of India after independence. This program was organized to remember how our great men sacrificed for the service of the country and motherland.
Senior leader Shri Golak Mohapatra said that the walk organized to mark the 150th birth anniversary of Sardar Patel saw representation from every section of Odisha. In the final phase of the program, 74 walkers from Odisha participated in the walk held at Karamsad to apply their experiences in their daily work and share them with others to build a developed Odisha.
State Youth Front President Shri Abhilash Panda said that the experience of the young people who participated in the Padyatra at the birthplace of Sardar Patel will be remembered for a lifetime. All the activists who participated will work in their respective areas as unity ambassadors to maintain the unity of the country.
Many party workers, including Yuva Morcha State Secretary and program coordinator Shri Prashant Paikrai, Yuva Morcha State Secretary Shri Subatra Biswal, were present at this felicitation meeting.
