Prime Minister Narendra Modi met his mother, Heeraben Modi, at her residence in Gujarat’s capital Gandhinagar on Saturday and sought her blessings as she entered the 100th year of her life. On the occasion of her birthday, PM Modi also penned an emotional letter for her, highlighting her sacrifices and calling her “extraordinary.”

“Today, I feel extremely happy and fortunate to share that my mother Smt. Heeraba is entering her hundredth year. This is going to be her birth centenary year. If my father had been alive, he too would have celebrated his 100th birthday last week. 2022 is a special year as my mother’s centenary year is starting, and my father would have completed his,” the PM wrote.

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He said his mother always inspired him to focus on “garib kalyan” (welfare of poor) and also recalled the time when she asked him “to never take a bribe.”

“In my mother’s life story, I see the penance, sacrifice, and contribution of India’s matrushakti. Whenever I look at mother and crores of women like her, I find there is nothing that is unachievable for Indian women,” PM Modi said.

He went on to describe his mother as “a symbol of resilience” and recalled the hardships she faced.

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The prime minister said his family stayed in a small mud house in Vadnagar with clay tiles for a roof. 

“During the rains, our roof would leak and the house would flood. Mother would place buckets and utensils below the leaks to collect the rainwater. Even in this adverse situation, mother would be a symbol of resilience,” he said.

He said that apart from doing household chores, she used to wash utensils at a few houses and take out the time to spin the ‘charkha’ to help meet the household expenses.