The Prime Minister, Shri Narendra Modi, today attended the 90 years celebrations of the Essel Group in New Delhi. The event was also attended by President Pranab Mukherjee.

Welcoming the Prime Minister, Chairman of the Essel Group Shri Subhash Chandra thanked him for graciously accepting the invitation for this event. He explained Essel Group’s recent social initiatives on themes such as water supply, power supply, Swachh Bharat and Affordable Housing.

Two social initiatives were launched by the Prime Minister on the occasion. These include Sarthi – a people’s empowerment programme on subjects such as education, health and employment; and the DSC Foundation with a corpus of Rs. 5000 crore, to empower people in need.

Speaking on the occasion, the Prime Minister described the programme as an illustration of Indian traditions. He said that India has had a tradition where successive generations take family values forward, and contribute to the family by adding their capacities and capabilities.

He recalled his earlier meetings with Shri Nandkishore Goenka and said the family has always been open to new ideas, and has taken every challenge as an opportunity, to create a presence in a range of initiatives from “soil to satellite.”

Appreciating the social initiatives of the Essel Group, the Prime Minister said that the Swachh Bharat Mission provides opportunities for a large number of social entrepreneurs to emerge. He said that while “Sarthi” presented a good blend of rights and duties, the DSC Foundation would help build a large number of job creators.

The Prime Minister urged everyone present to work towards specific goals for what they could do for the country by 2022 – the 75th anniversary of independence.