Everything that affects the development of the country has to be kept away, he said

Warning that the 'freebies culture' was very dangerous for the development of the country, Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Saturday called on the people to remove this thinking from India's politics.

Referring to the culture of seeking votes by distributing freebies, he argued that those with freebies culture, or 'rewri culture', will never build new expressways, new airports or defense corridors. The Prime Minister was comparing the freebies with "rewri," a delicious north Indian sweet frequently distributed during large gatherings.

He was speaking after inaugurating the Bundelkhand Expressway at Kaitheri village in Orai tehsil of Jalaun, Uttar Pradesh. UP Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath and state ministers were among those present.

"The people of freebies culture feel that they can buy the votes by distributing freebies to the common man," Prime Minister Modi said as he called on people to defeat this thinking collectively and remove culture from the politics of the country.

The government is working on solid projects of providing amenities like pucca houses, railway lines, roads and infrastructure, irrigation, electricity projects away from this ‘rewri’ culture, he said. “Double-engine governments are not adopting the short-cut of freebies and delivering through hard work," PM Modi said, referring to the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP)-led governments at the centre as well in a majority of the states.

During his address, the Prime Minister also said the larger thinking behind taking a decision and making a policy should be for further accelerating the development of the country. Everything that harms the country, affects the development of the country, has to be kept away, he pointed out.

Talking about the Bundelkhand Expressway, the Prime Minister emphasized that gone are the days when such great infrastructure and facilities were limited to large cities and selected areas of the countries.

Speaking about balanced development, the Prime Minister said that as development reaches ignored and small cities, it leads to realization of social justice.

"As modern infrastructure reaches much ignored easter India and Bundelkhand, this amounts to social justice. Backward districts that were left to fend for themselves are now witnessing development, this too his social justice. Toilets for the poor, connecting villages with roads and tap water too is social justice", he said.