Shah urges people to buy Khadi products worth Rs 5K every year

NEW DELHI: Union Home and Minister of Cooperation Amit Shah went to the Khadi India showroom in Connaught Place, New Delhi, on the occasion of Gandhi Jayanti and bought Khadi products and paid online. Celebrating the birth anniversary of Mahatma Gandhi, Shah highlighted the timelessness of Khadi and Swadeshi as supporting pillars of India’s freedom movement and as guiding forces for the future.

In his speech at the function, Shah explained that Mahatma Gandhi identified the heart of India and united common people to fight against colonialism. Gandhi, he said, merged various concepts into the movement for independence, two of the most important being Khadi and Swadeshi. “The freedom movement cannot be divorced from Khadi and Swadeshi.” With the introduction of these ideals, Gandhi not only accelerated the battle for freedom but also introduced hope and means of survival to tens of millions of impoverished families,” he stated.

Looking at the post-independence years, Shah informed us that Khadi as well as Swadeshi fell out of favour. But in 2003, when Narendra Modi was Gujarat’s Chief Minister, he started a widespread campaign to promote Khadi again. “That was the start of a new movement, and now Khadi has again become a routine item for people,” Shah further informed.

He highlighted the growth of Khadi and village industry products under Modi’s leadership. In the past 11 years, sales have grown nearly fivefold—from Rs. 33,000 crore to over Rs. 1.7 lakh crore. According to Shah, this transformation reflects not only the revival of an industry but also a renewed national consciousness aligned with Gandhi’s ideals.

Shah also pointed to Modi’s Mann Ki Baat programme as a catalyst for promoting Swadeshi. He said that millions of families across the country have pledged not to use foreign goods in their homes.