The people of a silent and sleepy village Prini on the outskirts of popular tourist resort Manali woke up on Friday to celebrate Bharat Ratna award to the former Prime Minister Atal Bihari Vajpayee. The cup-shaped village wore a festive look. People sang and danced and did the traditional worship of the local deities praying for the long life of a large-hearted great leader who sincerely loved Himachal Pradesh and made it his second home in the lap of the grand Himalayas.

    Vajpayee used to spend some time here when he was the Prime Minister. The ineffable warmth amongst the large gathering assembled in the village could be seen in the throbbing of hearts with love and adoration for the visionary leader. Praying for his recovery, many eyes in the gathering were moist to know that he was confined to bed.

During the last visit to the village he had sadly told the children, “Your uncle is no more a Prime Minister and could be of little help.” Locals here said the entire hill State is indebted to Vajpayee for his infinite love for Himachal Pradesh which the former Prime Minister cherished to lift out of the mire of backwardness and poverty and usher in a new era of prosperity. He was convinced that the hill State had been discriminated in the matter of development since independence.

He was kind enough to have granted a special economical package for Himachal Pradesh to ensure its swift and speedy development.      

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