Kumar Bahukhandi
Chhattisgarh Chief Minister Vishnu Deo Sai (centre), Deputy Chief Minister Arun Sao (L) and Revenue Minister Tank Ram Verma (R) listen to the 137th episode of Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s ‘Mann Ki Baat’ at Niranjan Dharamshala in Raipur on Sunday, August 30, 2026. Photo Credit : channel24india.com via CG/ DPR
Chief Minister says Modi’s monthly address gives national recognition to grassroots achievers; calls drug-free youth a shared responsibility of families and society
Key Highlights
- Vishnu Deo Sai listens to the 137th Mann Ki Baat at Niranjan Dharamshala in Raipur
- CM describes the programme as a platform that takes little-known grassroots achievements to a national audience
- Sai says keeping young people away from drugs requires collective social participation
- Chhattisgarh’s Mahima Rajput earns special mention for her association with Mission ShaktiSAT
- CM says recognition of Chhattisgarh initiatives in Mann Ki Baat has helped take the state’s achievements to a national audience
Raipur : Chhattisgarh Chief Minister Vishnu Deo Sai on Sunday August 30, 2026 gave a distinctly state-centric reading to Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s 137th Mann Ki Baat, saying the programme has emerged as a national platform for people and initiatives that might otherwise remain largely unknown outside their communities.
Sai, who listened to the programme at Niranjan Dharamshala in Raipur, said its significance went beyond the Prime Minister’s monthly radio interaction with citizens.
“Mann Ki Baat is not merely a radio programme. It is a powerful medium through which the Prime Minister maintains an emotional dialogue with the country’s 140 crore citizens,” Sai said.
According to the Chief Minister, one of the programme’s strengths is its ability to identify ordinary citizens doing extraordinary work — from environmental conservation and cleanliness to innovation using local resources — and introduce their efforts to a nationwide audience.
He said such recognition serves two purposes: it encourages those working without publicity or personal gain and provides examples that can inspire others.
From Drug-Free Youth to Chhattisgarh’s Daughter in Space Mission
Sai particularly backed Modi’s call for ‘Nasha-Mukt Yuva, Viksit Bharat’, saying India’s youth would be central to building a developed nation and protecting them from addiction could not be left to governments alone.
“Keeping young people away from drugs is a collective responsibility of the family, society and the nation,” Sai said, adding that addiction affects not merely an individual but also the family and the wider social environment.
But for Chhattisgarh, the day’s Mann Ki Baat also carried a more personal connection.
Sai expressed pride over Mahima Rajput of Chhattisgarh being associated with Mission ShaktiSAT, an initiative exposing thousands of girl students from India and other countries to satellite technology and innovation.
He congratulated Rajput and said the participation of a daughter of Chhattisgarh in such an initiative demonstrated how girls from the state were establishing themselves in science, technology, education, sports and other fields.
“It is a matter of special pride for the whole of Chhattisgarh that Mahima Rajput from our state is also part of this important initiative,” Sai said.
The Chief Minister also drew attention to Chhattisgarh’s appearances in previous episodes of Mann Ki Baat. He referred to subjects ranging from the Bastar Olympics to ancient copper plates discovered at Malhar and efforts for blackbuck conservation, saying their mention by the Prime Minister had helped bring aspects of the state’s heritage and initiatives before a national audience.
Sai also highlighted the Prime Minister’s references to women’s economic empowerment through PM SVANidhi, cleanliness and the Har Ghar Tiranga campaign, but his emphasis remained on converting such messages into citizen participation at the state and community level.
Deputy Chief Minister Arun Sao, Union Minister of State Tokhan Sahu, Rajya Sabha MP Laxmi Verma, Revenue Minister Tank Ram Verma, MLAs Motilal Sahu and Purandar Mishra, along with religious leaders, public representatives and citizens, were present during the programme.
