We must take pride in our heritage: PM Narendra Modi

New Delhi: Days after Uttar Pradesh BJP MLA Sangeet Som said the Taj Mahal was a “blot on Indian culture”, Prime Minister Narendra Modi, in an apparent reference to the incident, said Tuesday that “no country can move ahead without (taking) pride in its heritage”. The Prime Minister’s comments are being seen as a direct snub to Mr Som.

“Nations cannot develop if they don’t take pride in their history and heritage. If they do, they are sure to lose their identity over a period of time,” Mr Modi said at an event to inaugurate the first All India Institute of Ayurveda.

Mr Som had termed the Taj Mahal as “a blot on Indian culture”, saying the monument was built by “traitors”. This had prompted the Uttar Pradesh government to clarify that it was part of “our proud heritage”.

Interestingly, a recent book on Uttar Pradesh tourism did not include the name of the Taj Mahal as one of the chief attractions of the state.

Inaugurating the ayurveda hospital, meanwhile, Mr Modi said the government was working towards the setting up of such hospitals in each district of the country. He said the time had come for a “health revolution” under the aegis of the traditional medicine system.

“It is very necessary for the expansion of ayurveda that there’s a good hospital with all facilities in every district of the country.                    

The Ayush ministry is working swiftly in this direction, and in  more than three years, more than 65 Ayush hospitals have been developed,” he said.

The PM said the world was heading back to nature and wellness and Ayurveda was India’s strength.