Gorakhpur : Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Friday  said that the Seers and the religious orders  could play a major role in making India modern and prosperous.

Unveiling a statue of Mahanth Avaidyanath in Gorakhpur today, Modi also noted that many of them have taken up public welfare works like building toilets and providing health care facilities. He said that it is the demand of time that lakhs of saints, thousands of orders and hundreds of mathas can play a critical role in making India modern and prosperous, in cultivating good values among its people.

Uttar Pradesh Governor Ram Naik and Union Parliamentary Affairs Minister Ananth Kumar accompanied Modi at the event.