New Delhi: Prime Minister Narendra Modi Friday flagged off an enthusiasm-filled Run for Unity and himself briskly walked down Rajpath after paying rich tributes to free India's first home minister Sardar Vallabhbhai Patel.

Modi led the nation in paying tributes to Sardar Patel on his 139th birth anniversary, being commemorated as Rashtriya Ekta Diwas or National Unity Day, and recalled his key role in unifying a newly independent India.