Prime Minister Narendra Modi inaugurates Modi Shaikshanik Sankul

AHMEDABAD : Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Monday said only those societies that focus on education will succeed as he inaugurated an educational complex near Ahmedabad that will provide needy students with facilities for holistic development. The Modi Shaikshanik Sankul near Chharodi has been set up by the Modh Vanik Modi Samaj.

"I want to emphasise societies that focus on education will succeed. Keeping focusing on ways to make education more accessible to the youth is one of the main ways to success," he said, adding that "though our (caste) people are late, we are on the right path". The prime minister is on a three-day visit to poll-bound Gujarat from Sunday.

"I am glad more youngsters are focusing on medicine, engineering and other such streams. At the same time, I want to stress the importance of skill development as well. In the future, if a student does not have a degree but has some skill then it will be enough. If a child does not want to study, we should give him some skill," Modi said. He said this was a good achievement for a caste whose numbers are minuscule and whose members are mostly middle-class.

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Modi said he was fortunate that members of his caste had not come to him for any sort of work even though one among them has been longest serving chief minister of Gujarat and has been elected to the post of prime minister for a second time. "And my family has also been far away from me. So I am really fortunate and want to thank my samaj," he said. Incidentally, Modi's elder brother Somabhai Modi was present on the stage at the time of the inauguration of the educational complex as he is one of the caste leaders.

Modi Shaikshanik Sankul is an educational complex for needy students and will provide them with facilities for holistic development. Addressing a rally at Modhera in Mehsana district on Sunday, the prime minister had said the people of the state blessed him for the last two decades irrespective of his caste and political background.