New Delhi: Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Sunday said his monthly radio broadcast ‘Mann Ki Baat’ has become a unique festival of goodness and positivity for the countrymen.

Addressing the 100th episode of his monthly radio broadcast, the Prime Minister said: “Friends, October 3, 2014 (the day when the first episode was aired) was the festival of Vijaya Dashami and all of us together started the journey of ‘Mann Ki Baat’ on that day. Vijaya Dashami is the festival of victory of good over evil. Mann Ki Baat has also become a unique festival of goodness and positivity of the countrymen,” he said during the 100th episode of his monthly radio broadcast.

“Today is the hundredth episode of ‘Mann Ki Baat’. I have received thousands of letters from all of you, lakhs of messages and I have tried to read as many letters as possible, have a look at them and try to understand the messages a bit,” Modi added.

The prime minister went on to add that whether it is about education or culture, whether it is about its preservation or promotion, this has been an ancient tradition of India.

“The work that the country is doing in this direction today is really commendable. Be it the National Education Policy or the option of studying in a regional language, or technology integration in education, you will notice many such efforts. Years ago, programmes like ‘Gunotsav and Shala Praveshotsav’ had become a wonderful example of public participation in Gujarat to providing better education and reducing dropout rates,” he said.

Modi said that through the programme, he has tried to highlight the efforts of many such people, who are selflessly working for education.

In strengthening the social fabric of India, ‘Mann Ki Baat’ is like the thread of a rosary, holding each bead together. In every episode, the spirit of service and capability of the countrymen have inspired others, he added.

“In this programme, every countryman becomes an inspiration to other countrymen. In a way, every episode of Mann Ki Baat prepares the ground for the next episode. ‘Mann Ki Baat’ has always moved ahead with goodwill, the spirit of service-spirit and the sense of duty,” the prime minister added while expressing his gratitude to people of the country.

He also thanked the teams of All India Radio and Doordarshan for recording the programme with “great patience”.

Apart from 22 Indian languages and 29 dialects, Mann Ki Baat is broadcast in 11 foreign languages including French, Chinese, Indonesian, Tibetan, Burmese, Baluchi, Arabic, Pashtu, Persian, Dari and Swahili. Mann Ki Baat is being broadcast by more than 500 broadcast centres of All India Radio.

Unesco chief interacts with Modi

Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Sunday interacted with UNESCO Director-General Audrey Azoulay in the 100th episode of his monthly radio broadcast ‘Mann Ki Baat’.

The Director-General of UNESCO not only wished the countrymen for the wonderful journey of the 100th episode of ‘Mann Ki Baat’ but also asked questions on education and cultural preservation in India.

Audrey Azoulay is a French civil servant and politician who has been serving as the Director-General of the United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO) since 2017, becoming the second female leader of the organisation.