Prime Minister Narendra Modi interacted with the winners of the National Child Award, 2022, and extolled the valour and sacrifice of the four martyred sons of Guru Gobind Singh. He also urged them to follow Netaji Subhash Chandra Bose’s motto of “nation first”.

Twenty-nine children were conferred with the Pradhan Mantri Rashtriya Bal Puraskar for their exceptional achievements in innovation, social science, education, sports, arts and culture and for demonstrating bravery. They were given digital certificates using blockchain technology and a cash prize of ₹1 lakh at an event held online.

Mr. Modi said, “In our country, we have the example of Guru Gobind Singh’s four sons, sahibzaade who sacrificed their lives at a very young age. Their sacrifice for Indian civilisation, culture, faith and religion is incomparable.”

Netaji’s contribution

He reminded the children of the contribution of Netaji a day after his digital statue was set up at India Gate. “You must have seen that we have set up a digital statue of Netaji Subhash Chandra Bose. Netaji inspires us to believe in duty and [the principle of] nation first,” he stated.

The Prime Minister told the awardees that they were being honoured on a special occasion, when the country was celebrating Azadi ka Amrit Mahotsav to mark 75 years of Independence. This was an occasion to not only be motivated by the achievements of the past, but to honour the pledges made in the present and to dream and set goals for the future, he stressed.

He urged the children to take the message of “Vocal for Local” campaign far and wide. “Make a list of all the items you use in a day and identify those that are not made in India. You must insist that your family members buy only those products that are made in India. When you buy such products, their production will increase. This will result in increase in employment opportunities and help you become self-sufficient [atmanirbhar]. That is why our atmanirbhar campaign is linked to the youth of,” he added.