Panipat, Dec 9 : Haryana Chief Minister Nayab Singh Saini on Monday expressed gratitude to Prime Minister Narendra Modi for choosing the historic land of Panipat for the nationwide launch of Bima Sakhi Yojana.

Addressing the gathering at the launch of the ‘Bima Sakhi Yojana’ by Prime Minister Narendra Modi, Saini said Haryana “is a land that symbolises sacrifice, patience, valour, and service, and is once again inspired to convey a message of women empowerment.”

Haryana Governor Bandaru Dattatraya, Union Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman, Union Minister of Power Manohar Lal, Union Minister of State Rao Inderjit Singh, state Cabinet ministers Shruti Choudhry and Kumari Arti Singh Rao were present.

The Prime Minister recalled that in 2015, from this historic land of Panipat, the Prime Minister had laid the foundation of the ‘Beti Bachao-Beti Padhao’ campaign. “Today, the Prime Minister by launching the Bima Sakhi Yojana has taken yet another historic step towards the upliftment and empowerment of women”.

He reaffirmed Haryana's commitment to contributing maximally to the development of India and ensuring the success of the Bima Sakhi Yojana.

The Chief Minister said this new initiative would make women self-reliant and enable them to contribute significantly to building a developed India.

He expressed gratitude to Prime Minister Modi for this initiative and also thanked him for laying the foundation stone of the main campus of Maharana Pratap Horticulture University.

Saini said the Prime Minister had once stated that India's development is possible only when 50 per cent of its population women become empowered.