BJP president Amit Shah pitches for celebrating PM Narendra Modi's birthday as 'sewa diwas'

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Delhi: BJP president Amit Shah on Thursday pitched for celebrating the birthday of Prime Minister Narendra Modi on September 17 as 'sewa divas' (day of service).

Shah posted on micro-blogging site Twitter: "Let's celebrate the PM's birthday as sewa diwas. I am happy that lakhs of party workers across the country have decided to hold events of social service on this occasion. As a party worker, I will take part in a cleanliness drive in Telangana. There is nothing more satisfying than public service. It is very correct of the Prime Minister to say that development should benefit the poor people. This shows out commitment to 'antyodaya'."

आइये माननीय प्रधानमंत्री श्री @narendramodi जी के जन्मदिन को "सेवा दिवस" के रूप में मनाएं | pic.twitter.com/Fw06ySvMUx — Amit Shah (@AmitShah) September 15, 2016

PM Modi to distribute enabling equipment to divyangs on his birthday

On the other hand, PM Modi will celebrate his birthday on Saturday by distributing aid and enabling equipment to more than one thousand divyangs (people with disability) at Navsari in Gujarat.

The items to be distributed include wheelchairs, tricycles, hearing aids and special smartphones for the visually impaired.

"On September 17, Prime Minister Narendra Modi will distribute 11,223 aids and appliances to the divyangs or you can say persons with disabilities. The purpose is to make their life better and allow them earn their livelihood with the help of these equipment," Union Social Justice Minister Thawar Chand Gehlot, who will also take part in the event, had said yesterday.

He had also said that his department has been organising employment fairs for the divyangs, as per PTI.

PM Modi during his radio address "Mann ki Baat" on December 27 last year, had said physically challenged people have a 'divine ability' and the term 'divyang' should be used for them in place of 'viklang'. 

PM Modi's birthday celebrations aim for four records

Meanwhile, celebrations in connection with PM Modi`s 66th birthday at Navasari district in Gujarat will aim to set three Guinness World Records and one at the national level, the organisers said.

The organisers aim to break a world record for maximum number of people in wheelchairs who form an image or a logo. The previous record was made in the US by 346 wheelchair-bound persons in 2010.

On PM Modi`s birthday, the new record will involve 1,000 persons on wheelchairs, an official of the organising committee said.

Another record expected to be set anew will be by providing hearing aids to another 1,000 hearing-impaired persons. The previous record was made in Australia. 

As many as 1,500 oil lamps will be lit simultaneously at a single location to establish another record.

"The programme is inspired by the central government`s `Accessible India` campaign. Under this, people with disability will be given hearing aids, wheelchairs and tricycles, chairs meant for cerebral palsy patients, calipers and prosthetics and multi-sensory integrated educational development kits," the official from the organising committee told IANS. 

The event will be monitored by officials from the Guinness World Records.

(With Agency inputs)