India, Nov. 1 -- The country's first deputy prime minister and home minister, Sardar Vallabhbhai Patel, was remembered on his 151st birth anniversary on Saturday, October 31, with Prime Minister Narendra Modi offering tributes at the Statue of Unity in Ekta Nagar, Gujarat. The day is observed as National Unity Day.

In a post on X, Modi called Patel "the architect of Akhand Bharat" and the "Iron Man of the nation", saying he gave his life to building a strong, prosperous and capable India. He added that Patel's sacrifice and devotion were an inspiration for a developed and self-reliant country, though reports differed slightly in the wording they carried.

Union Home Minister Amit Shah called Patel the architect of modern India, crediting...