Page 15 - SocialHarmony

18 Social Harmony

was way beyond his means. He was not even allowed to take
his wife and new-born daughter home until he paid the bill in
full. The place was unknown and even his relatives refused to
help him. On one hand, he was overjoyed on the birth of his
daughter and on the other, he was worried about how to pay
the hospital bill. Seeing his distress, the security officer at the
hospital suggested that he should approach the Chief Minister
Shri Narendra Modi in Gandhinagar for assistance, as
Maninagar is his constituency.

The very same day Chandrakant reached Shri Narendra
Modi’s residence in Gandhinagar. He showed the hospital bill
to the police officer on duty, who took it inside while
Chandrakant waited outside. After a few minutes, Shri
Narendra Modi came out and asked Chandrakant to talk about
himself and his problem. He gave him a letter on his letterhead
and asked him to show it to the hospital. “Don’t worry,
everything will be alright. Convey my good wishes to your wife
and daughter,” he assured Chandrakant.

Chandrakant thanked Shri Narendra Modi, and left for
Ahmedabad. When he showed the Chief Minister’s letter to the
hospital authorities, they waived the complete bill amount and
Chandrakant was able to take his wife and daughter home. After
three years Chandrakant moved back to Hubli, but he cannot
forget Shri Narendra Modi. Whenever he sees his picture in the
newspaper or on TV, he still feels the thrill of that incident and
retells the story countless times.

At the tender age of 14, Shri Narendra Modi expressed his
resentment of the unfair practice of untouchability and made
up his mind to serve the downtrodden; and he continues to act
as their guardian after becoming the Chief Minister.

The concept of a welfare state which gives the highest
priority to the well-being and happiness of its people has long
been advocated by our Indian culture. The true measure of the
progress of any state is the extent of progress achieved by the
underprivileged. True development is that which brings the
fruits of happiness even to the last person in the remotest
backward area. Shri Narendra Modi’s administration believes