Overview

• Gadkari received the annual Lokmanya Tilak National Award conferred by the Lokmanya Tilak Smarak Trust in Pune.
• He argued that politics does not require lies, flattery, caste appeals or freebies and called on politicians to speak the truth confidently.
• He recalled pledging during his Lok Sabha campaign to forgo giveaways and caste-based appeals in favor of merit-driven governance.
• He stated that funds and technology are plentiful in his ministry but implementation is held back by a lack of honest workers.
• He announced a formal review of the satellite-based toll system over identified security and privacy concerns.