New Delhi, Sep 25 (IANS) The Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) on Thursday announced the launch of a nationwide 90-day campaign to promote Swadeshi and Aatmanirbhar Bharat, spanning from September 25, the birth anniversary of Pandit Deendayal Upadhyaya, to December 25, the birth anniversary of former Prime Minister and Bharat Ratna Atal Bihari Vajpayee.

Addressing a press conference at the BJP headquarters in New Delhi, the party’s National General Secretary and Rajya Sabha MP Arun Singh said the campaign is being held on the call of Prime Minister Narendra Modi and will focus on making “Vocal for Local” a people’s movement.

“From September 25 to December 25, BJP workers across the country will reach every household with the message of ‘Swadeshi’. More than 20,000 Aatmanirbhar Bharat Sankalp meetings, 1,000 Swadeshi Melas, and 500 Sankalp Rath Yatras will be organised. Padyatras, youth conventions, women’s meetings, traders’ sammelans, college competitions, and social media outreach will also be part of the drive,” Singh said.

He underlined that the campaign aims to encourage citizens to buy Indian-made products, strengthen domestic industries, and celebrate India’s economic rise.

“Every shop will be urged to display boards saying ‘Proudly Swadeshi’. People will be asked to sign pledge forms to adopt Swadeshi. Certificates will be given to shopkeepers selling only indigenous products,” he added.

Tracing the roots of the movement, Singh recalled the role of Swadeshi in the freedom struggle during the 1905 Bengal partition, noting that leaders like Rabindranath Tagore and Bankim Chatterjee had voiced the spirit of self-reliance against colonial rule.

He highlighted how Prime Minister Modi’s 2019 call for “Vocal for Local” has transformed sectors like Khadi, mobile manufacturing, toys, automobiles, and exports.

“Khadi sales have grown from Rs 31,000 crore under UPA to Rs 1.7 lakh crore today. India, once with just two mobile factories in 2014, now has 300 units and exports phones worth Rs 2 lakh crore,” Singh said.

The BJP leader stressed that the campaign is not about boycotts but about economic self-reliance and cultural pride.

“This vision will lead India towards becoming a developed nation by 2047, as envisaged by Prime Minister Modi,” he said.

–IANS

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