President Ram Nath Kovind on Saturday wished a happy Independence Day to all the Indians living here and abroad. He also highlighted the special significance of this day this year as the country will be celebrating ‘Azadi ka Amrit Mahotsav’.

Beginning his address to the nation, President Kovind said, “Happy Independence Day to all Indians living in India and abroad. This day is a day of great joy and happiness for all of us.”

“This year’s Independence Day has special significance because from this year onwards we all are celebrating the Amrit Mahotsav of Independence on the occasion of 75th anniversary of our independence,” he added.

Recalling the struggle for freedom and martyrdom of countrymen, President Kovind said that Independence Day is a festival of freedom for us. Our dream of freedom was realised through the struggle of many generations of known and unknown freedom fighters.

“They made great sacrifices. I bow in respect to the pious memory of those brave martyrs,” he said.

He went on to say, “Now as we look back to the 75-year journey of our republic, we’ve reasons to be proud of the considerable distance we have travelled. Gandhi ji taught us that slow and steady steps in the right direction are preferable to rapid strides in the wrong direction.”

Highlighting the achievements of India’s sportspersons in the recently-concluded Olympics in Tokyo, President Kovind said our sportspersons have brought laurels to the nation with their stellar performances. India has won the highest number of medals in the 121 years of its participation in the Olympics.

Shifting focus to the Covid-19 pandemic, he stressed that the intensity of the pandemic has come down, but the coronavirus has not yet gone away. We are yet to come out of the devastating effects of its recurrence this year.

Our corona warriors, the doctors, nurses and health workers, the administrators, and others, risked everything to contain the impact of the second wave, he said.

The President then urged all eligible citizens who are yet to get vaccinated to do so at the earliest and also inspire others.

He concluded his address by saying, “I congratulate all of you, on the eve of India’s 75th Independence Day. While celebrating this anniversary, I cannot stop my mind from imagining a powerful, prosperous and peaceful India of 2047 when we will celebrate 100 years of our independence.”