Encourage our athletes & cheer for Bharat, says PM Modi in 'Mann Ki Baat'

New Delhi, July 28 (IANS) Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Sunday urged the citizens to cheer for the athletes who have gone to Paris to represent the country in the Olympics and also extended his best wishes to them. 

PM Modi addressed the 112th episode of his monthly radio show 'Mann Ki Baat', his second after coming to power the third time in a row.

"Right now, the entire world is engrossed with the Paris Olympics. The Olympics provide our athletes with the opportunity to hoist the Tricolour on the global stage and to do something remarkable for the country. You too, encourage our athletes and Cheer for Bharat!" he said.

The PM also interacted with the participants of the International Mathematics Olympiad.

"A few days ago an Olympics has also taken place in the field of Maths -- International Mathematics Olympiad. In this Olympiad, the students of India have performed very well. Our team has given its best performance and won four gold medals and one silver medal. Youth from more than 100 countries participated in the International Mathematics Olympiad and our team was in the top five in the overall tally. The names of these students who have brought laurels to the country are -- Aditya Ventaka Ganesh from Pune, Siddharth Chopra also from Pune, Arjun Gupta from Delhi, Kanav Talwar from Greater Noida, Rushil Mathur from Mumbai and Ananda Bhaduri from Guwahati," PM Modi said.

The PM had specially invited these young winners to participate in the Mann Ki Baat episode. He asked the students about their experiences and to share those with the country. The students said that their interest in Maths was the main reason for their winning performances.

Aditya and Siddharth from Pune attributed their win to the opportunity and learning they got from their Maths teacher, Prakash.

Arjun Gupta expressed his pride in getting to talk to the Prime Minister. He said, "Maths helps us to develop problem-solving ability, which not only helps in one subject but also every aspect of life."

Kanav Talwar said that his likeness for Maths was developed because of his parents and his sister. He also shared his experience of failing to secure a seat in the team last year, however, he did not give up. He said, "My parents taught me that either we win or we learn and it is the journey that matters, not the success."

Rushil Mathur said that Maths is not only about logical thinking but also about creativity because it helps the students to think out of the box while solving questions.

Ananda Bhaduri said that this was his second International Mathematics Olympiad, and both experiences were nice. "I got to learn a lot from it," he said.