'No one can hold India back now,' says Narendra Modi at Wembley
'No one can hold India back now,' says Modi
'No one can hold India back now,' says Modi
London
: Facing attack back home over the issue of 'intolerance', Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Saturday said the country's \"strength and pride\" lies in India's diversity as he underlined the importance of peaceful co-existence. Modi also said that there is no reason for India to remain poor, asserting. \"we harbour poverty for no reason.\"
The Prime Minister was addressing thousands of people, almost all of Indian origin, at a Grand Community reception in his honour at the iconic Wembley Stadium, home to rock concerts and England's national soccer team. The event was themed 'Two Great Nations, One Glorious Future'.
Courting the Indian diaspora with rock star-style tour on the second day of his three-day visit to the UK--the first by an Indian Premier in 10 years--, Modi got a rapturous welcome when he reached one of Britain's most famous sporting venues this evening. An estimated 50,000 to 60,000 people were present at the event, according to the organisers.
Modi was introduced to the gathering by British Prime Minister David Cameron, whose wife Samantha, draped in a saree, was also present.
\"India is full of diversity. This diversity is our pride and it is our strength. Diversity is the speciality of India,\" he said, adding that despite the country being home to diverse religions, over 100 languages and 1,500 dialects Indians have proved how to live together.
The Prime Minister said the whole world is amazed how 125 crore people with so much diversity live peacefully with love and affection.
Modi, who was speaking against the backdrop of raging debate on \"intolerance\" in India, told the gathering during the course of his 75-minute address that newspaper and TV headlines are not the barometer to assess the country. \"India is not only that much what is seen in newspapers.
India is much bigger. India with its 125 crore people is much bigger and better with a preeminent position beyond the screen of Television,\" he said.
In this context, Modi referred to a youth Imran Khan of Alwar in Rajasthan who made 50 mobile applications and dedicated them to the students without charging anything. \"My India resides in people like Imran Khan,\" he said.
On Indo-UK relations, Modi said, \"Between two vibrant democracies we are celebrating this very special relationships in this very special venue,\" Modi stated.
\"I was told London will be cold but not so cold. Your warm welcome makes me feel at home. I am grateful to PM Cameron for his kind words,\" Modi said.
Modi, who acknowledged that terrorism is a challenge to both India and the UK, asserted that the Sufi tradition is the best antidote to terrorism and anybody who understood the message of this tenet would not have picked up the gun.
\"Kabir and Rahim have been our inspirations. Sufi tradition is the best antidote to terrorism,\" he said, adding the two main challenges facing the world today are terrorism and global warming.
The Prime Minister announced a direct Air India flight between Ahmedabad and London from December 15. He said this connectivity had been established in 2003 during Vajpayee government but was discontinued later.
Here are the highlights of the speech:
Modi wraps his Wembley speech with chants of 'Bharat Mata ki Jai' and leaves the podium to meet and greet the audience, and be among them Modi speaks of a solar alliance of 102 countries that receive ample sunlight, which he calls 'suryaputra', or 'sons of the sun', to harness it to build greener economies. London-Ahmedabad direct flight from December 15 this year, announces Modi There is now an e-portal to help you with all your issues with Visa, PIO & OCI, says Modi Terrorism and global warming are the two great challenges; the world shoud unite to tackle these issues: Modi \"FDI in India has increased 40% in the past year. FDI means foreign direct investment, yes, but it also means 'first develop India',” says Modi Modi talks about renewable energy, solar power. \"18,000 villages in India will have electricity in 1,000 days,\" promises Modi “We don’t want favours from the world. We want relationships based on equality,\" says Modi Indians are known for living peacefully with people from different backgrounds, throughout the world, says Modi Indians were fighting the war for freedom from the British even in the U.K., Modi tells the audience \"India has the power, has a young population. No one can hold India back now,\" says Modi \"It's a historic day, a big thank you for being here,\" PM Modi begins his address British PM and his wife accompany PM Modi to Wembley; over 60,000 attending Wembley event.
Medley of Punjabi dhol, Maharashtrian dhol Tasha and pipe band rocks London's Wembley Stadium #ModiInUK pic.twitter.com/xOHiAzgdB3
Besides the scheduled performances of pop star Jay Sean and hitmaker 'Baby Doll' singer Kanika Kapoor, a lot of classical, folk art and contemporary music performances are also lined up.
PM Narendra Modi to address the Indian diaspora later in the day at Wembley Stadium #ModiInUK pic.twitter.com/VrxLROxKx4
The gathering will be capped off with 'the biggest fireworks display in the whole country', according to the 'UK Welcomes Modi' website and British Prime Minister will also be present at the community reception.
Earlier on Friday, Prime Minister Modi and Cameron attended the India-UK CEOs Forum meeting at Lancaster House in London.
The meeting saw the attendance of 40 top Indian and British business leaders, including those from Rolls Royce and Vodafone.
While Prime Minister Modi has begun the second day of his three-day visit, deals worth nearly 9.2 billion pounds have already been announced, which include 28 business-to-business agreements.
Prime Minister Modi arrived in the United Kingdom on Thursday on a three-day visit. He has since had delegation-level talks, addressed the British Parliament and the City of London, met representatives of the Sikh community and paid homage before a statue of Mahatma Gandhi.