To commemorate the birth centenary of Bharat Ratna Atal Bihari Vajpayee, Defence Minister Rajnath Singh and Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath inaugurated the two-day Atal Health Fair at Dilkusha Lawn here on Tuesday.
They also inaugurated and laid the foundation for 181 projects worth Rs 662 crore on the occasion.
Speaking at the event, Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath said former prime minister Vajpayee, who represented Lucknow as an MP five times, revolutionised Indian politics by steering it from instability to stability.
“He also brought Pandit Deendayal Upadhyay’s vision of Antyodaya to life. Inspired by his legacy, the Atal Health Fair continues to deliver healthcare services to the underprivileged and needy,” the CM remarked.
Adityanath recalled that health fairs were first launched during Vajpayee’s leadership in 1998-99, but were discontinued in later years.
“Reviving this tradition, the Atal Health Fair has been organised consistently over the last five years, benefiting more than 50,000 people between 2020 and 2023,” he said.
Describing Vajpayee as the ‘Ajatshatru’ of Indian politics, the CM praised his spontaneity and simplicity, which endeared him to people across all sections of the society.
He also commended Defence Minister Singh’s role in Lucknow’s all-around development and acknowledged the contribution of projects worth Rs 662 crore that were inaugurated and launched during the event.
Singh has been a Lok Sabha MP from Lucknow since 2019.
The chief minister further highlighted the distribution of assistive devices like prosthetic limbs, tricycles, wheelchairs, and blind sticks at the health fair.
Referring to initiatives for empowering the differently-abled under Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s leadership, Adityanath emphasised the increase in their annual pension to Rs 12,000 and highlighted ongoing programmes for equipment distribution to support their needs.
Singh said that in the battle against encephalitis, Adityanath has accomplished what he could not during his tenure as Uttar Pradesh’s chief minister due to the lack of effective remedies at that time.
After inaugurating the ‘Atal Health Fair’ along with CM Adityanath, the defence minister recalled seeing parents carrying the bodies of children in front of the hospital during his student days at the Gorakhpur University.
“When the BJP’s double-engine government was formed in 2017, the government led by CM Yogi worked tirelessly to eliminate encephalitis, with Yogi ji personally overseeing the efforts. Today, the number of children dying from encephalitis in Purvanchal, across Uttar Pradesh and parts of Bihar has become negligible,” Singh said.
Singh also shared fond memories of Vajpayee, reflecting on his leadership and contributions. He recalled a moment during the tenure of former prime minister Narasimha Rao when Atal Bihari Vajpayee was the leader of opposition in Parliament.
“During that time, India had to present its position at a United Nations forum in Geneva, and Rao entrusted the task to Atal ji, believing that only he could carry out the responsibility effectively,” he added.
Singh highlighted Vajpayee’s unique personality, emphasising that leaders like him engaged in politics not for personal gain or to enhance their stature, but to build the nation and the society.
Singh also mentioned that since the current government came to power, 22 AIIMS have been approved under the leadership of Prime Minister Modi, with more than 12 already completed and construction ongoing at four more locations.
Furthermore, the number of medical colleges in the country has increased from 387 in 2014 to 780 and MBBS seats have risen from 50,000 to 1.20 lakh, he said.
The defence minister further said that on Wednesday (Dec 25), the nation would celebrate Vajpayee’s birth centenary year and Indians living in many countries around the world would also celebrate it.
