Good Governance Day: President Ram Nath Kovind and PM Modi paid tributes to Atal Bihari Vajpayee.
President Ram Nath Kovind, Prime Minister Narendra Modi and other top ministers paid floral tributes to former Prime Minister Atal Bihar Vajpayee at his memorial in Delhi on his 96th birth anniversary.
Atal Bihar Vajpayee "took the country to unprecedented heights of development", PM Modi said in a tweet today.
"Salute to former Prime Minsiter Atal Bihar Vajpayee on his birth anniversary. Under his visionary leadership, he took the country to unprecedented heights of development. His efforts to build a strong and prosperous India will always be remembered," PM Modi tweeted in Hindi.
Several other Union Ministers, including Home Minister Amit Shah, Defence Minister Rajnath Singh, paid tributes to Mr Vajpayee. "Atal-ji's sense of duty and service to the nation will always serve as an inspiration for us," Mr Shah, who too placed flowers at Mr Vajpayee's memorial today, tweeted in Hindi.
On Mr Vajpayee's birthday, observed by the BJP as "Good Governance Day", PM Modi will address nine crore farmers and clarify the centre's position on the farm laws, as well as release the next batch of financial aid - ₹ 18,000 crore - from the PM-Kisan scheme.
Born on December 25, 1924 in Madhya Pradesh's Gwalior, Mr Vajpayee was the first from the BJP to become Prime Minister. He served as Prime Minister thrice - briefly in 1996, from 1998 to 1999, and then for a full five-year term between 1999 and 2004.
Apart from politics, Mr Vajpayee was a prominent writer and wrote a number of poems.
He died on August 16, 2018. December 25 is celebrated as "Good Governance Day" in Mr Vajpayee's honour.