Varanasi: Prime Minister Narendra Modi today adopted a village called 'Jayapur' in his Varanasi parliamentary constituency and exhorted its residents to combine their collective strength to educate the children and ensure hygiene.
Modi, who is on a two-day visit to Varanasi, was accorded a grand welcome at Jayapur village. Village women garlanded him and put a vermillion tika on his forehead.
After a brief interaction with village elders and village head Durga Devi, Modi addressed the enthusiastic gathering, seeking their support in developing the village.
Trashing media reports on the criteria for selecting Jayapur village, the prime minister said the village drew his attention when he came to know that five people had died in a fire here.
"Jo sankat ke samay sambandh bante hain wo rishte chiranjeev hote hain" (The bonds forged during testing times are everlasting)," Modi said.
He then said while the villagers may be expecting grand announcements from him for the village, he will not choose to make them public now and rather do the work. He also sought the support of people in ushering in the change.
"I do not talk big, I was not born like that that. I say small things and do big things," he said while pointing out that if only tall pronouncements by earlier governments had borne fruits, this village would not have in the poor state it is now.
