New Delhi, June 26 (IANS): Prime Minister Narendra Modi, marking his one month in office, said in a blog post Thursday that every decision taken by his government has been guided "solely by national interest" and his numerous meetings with ministers and officials have led to the regime coming up with "excellent roadmaps" for moving ahead.
Modi, who was sworn in May 26 after the BJP's stunning victory in the elections, said he does not have the luxury of a "honeymoon period".
"In the last month, our entire team has devoted every single moment for the welfare of the people. Every decision we took has been guided solely by national interest," he wrote.
Modi said at the time of taking over, he was assailed with the thought that he was new to the place and "some people believed that I would take at least a year or even two to learn the intricacies of the working of the central government".
"Fortunately, a month later that thought does not exist any longer in my mind. My confidence and determination has increased tremendously and I credit a substantial part of this to the collective experience and wisdom of my ministerial colleagues and also to my experiences as a four time chief minister. The affection of the people and support from officials has also added to this confidence in large measure," he said in his blog post, whose link was posted on his Twitter handle.
The prime minister said that he has been meeting ministers and officials from various departments over the past few days and listening to their presentations, which have "enabled a wonderful exchange of thoughts and ideas and we have come up with excellent roadmaps for the various ministries and departments".
Modi said that several chief ministers have met him in the past month and extended their good wishes and spoken about issues concerning their states. "I look forward to working closely with them in the times to come," he said.
"I feel there are areas where surely we need to improve. A big challenge I am facing in Delhi is to convey to a select group of people about our intentions and sincerity to bring a positive change in this country. These are people who are both within and outside the government system.
"There have been some instances in the last month with which our Government had nothing to do yet these controversies have persisted. I don't blame anybody but I surely feel that we need to strengthen systems whereby the right things are communicated to the right people at the right time. Hopefully things will change then," he wrote.
Referring to the so-called "honeymoon period" of his government, Modi wrote: "Previous governments had the luxury of extending this 'honeymoon period' upto a 100 days and even beyond. Not unexpectedly I don't have any such luxury. Forget 100 days, the series of allegations began in less than a hundred hours. But when one is working with the sole aim of serving the nation determinately, these things do not matter. That is why I keep working and that is most satisfying."
In a reference to the Emergency, and in an oblique attack at the Congress, Modi said that June 26 is an important date in many ways.
"It marks the completion of one month of our journey to fulfil the aspirations of the people. This day is also another landmark day, when in 1975 I witnessed an important phase that taught me the significance of a vibrant democracy. 26th June was the day when the Emergency started, having been imposed an evening earlier. As a youngster, I have several memories of those testing times."
Terming the Emergency as "one of the darkest periods in our history" and "a grim reminder of the dangers associated with subverting freedom of speech, press, expression and silencing opposition", Modi said that Indian democracy will not sustain if we can't guarantee freedom of speech and expression.
"Today is also a day to reaffirm our pledge to safeguard these values and at the same time create strong institutions through good governance so that that we never ever see those dark days again."