New Delhi: The Prime Minister of India, Narendra Modi, on Sunday extended his greetings to the people of Gujarat and Maharashtra on the occasion of the foundation day of both states.
He said that the people of Gujarat are widely admired for their diverse accomplishments, and prayed for Gujarat to keep progressing in the coming years.
“On Gujarat’s Foundation Day, my greetings to the people of Gujarat. Inspired by the ideals of Mahatma Gandhi, Sardar Patel and several other greats, the people of Gujarat are widely admired for their diverse accomplishments. May Gujarat keep progressing in the coming years.” the prime minister said in a tweet.
Wishing Maharashtra on its state foundation day, the prime minister said that the state has made phenomenal contributions to national progress, and that the people have excelled in diverse fields. He prayed for the prosperity of the people of the state.
The prime minister tweeted: “Best wishes to the people of Maharashtra on Maharashtra Day. This state has made phenomenal contributions to national progress. The people of the state have excelled in diverse fields. I pray for the prosperity of the people of Maharashtra.”
Gujarat State Foundation Day
Every year, Gujarat celebrates its state foundation day on May 1. This is because on May 1, 1960, the former state of Bombay was bifurcated on a linguistic basis as a result of which two states were born — Gujarat and Maharashtra.
The prime minister served as the chief minister of Gujarat from 2001 to 2014. He visited Gujarat in the months of March and April this year, ahead of the state assembly elections in December. Gujarat has been ruled by the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) since 1995.
A day after the results of the Assembly elections in the states of Uttar Pradesh, Punjab, Manipur, Goa, and Uttarakhand were declared, Modi went on a two-day visit to Gujarat in March, during which he held three roadshows in the state.
In April, Modi went on a three-day visit to Gujarat, during which he paid the foundation stone of various developmental projects, including the World Health Organization (WHO) Global Centre for Traditional Medicine in Jamnagar.
Maharashtra Day
The state foundation day of Maharashtra, also known as Maharashtra Day or Maharashtra Diwas, is celebrated to commemorate the bifurcation of the then state of "Bombay" on a linguistic basis into two states — Gujarat and Maharashtra — on May 1, 1960.
Several protests and movements had demanded the creation of an individual state, following which the Bombay Reorganisation Act came into effect on May 1, 1960.