Just a day prior to government’s decision on red beacons for VIP’s come into effect, PM Modi said on Sunday that the decision to eliminate the red beacons is directed in order to exclude the VIP culture from the mindset of certain people. He added that the concept should be replaced with “EPI”, meaning “Every Person is Important”. He underlined that all the 125 crore people of the country have equal value and importance.
“I did not know that people have so much contempt for the VIP culture before we took the decision recently banning the use of red beacons on vehicles of ministers and others,” he said on his monthly radio program ‘Mann Ki Baat’.
“Experience shows that though the red beacon would be used atop a vehicle, gradually the VIP culture would go to the head of those using it and it would lead to a mindset of VIP culture. Although the ‘lal batti’ is gone now, nobody can claim that because of this, the VIP culture which has gone into the mindset would have also gone,” PM Modi said adding that the removal of red beacons was an administrative decision.
“If we all make concerted efforts jointly, this also can go (from the mindset),” he added.
Emphasizing on the importance to ‘EPI’ culture, he said, “When I say EPI instead of VIP, the meaning is clear — Every Person is Important. Every person has value and importance. If we recognize the importance of 123 crore citizens of the country, imagine the big strength that the country will have in fulfilling the grand dreams. We all have to do it together,”.
