Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Wednesday (18) kickstarted his four-day visit to the UK by meeting his British counterpart Theresa May and the two heads of state discussed a wide range of issues including terrorism, visas and immigration.
During his interaction with May, Modi also spoke about the commendable job the India diaspora was doing to furthering the India-UK friendship.
The prime minister will end day one with an interaction with the Indian diaspora.
The mega event, titled Bharat Ki Baat, Sabke Saath, will see Modi addressing questions from across the world that have already been received via social media.
Just hours before the event, Modi took to Twitter to say he was looking forward to the “unique interaction.”
Live updates of Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s speech:
00:12 (IST) : “I was not born with an aim to be in history books. I request you all- remember our country and not Modi. I am just like you all, a common citizen of India.”
00:00 (IST): “You all must have seen that the power of your passport has increased. People look at you with pride. India is still is the same. But today we can see a difference. India has managed to do this and now people know the power of India.”
23:30 (IST) : “When I was Gujarat chief minister, I used to get these wonderful gifts at various events – sometimes a silver sword, often beautiful paintings. Wouldn’t anyone want to keep these in their homes? Not me. I auctioned them away and soon enough we had Rs 100 crore with which we created a fund for the education of the girl child. That is my life, I have been so poor that these riches don’t affect me.”
23:23 (IST) : On Gujarat’s progress – “Gujarat was the first state in the country which got 24 hours electricity supply but ask any 18 year old in India today about lack of power and they just won’t understand what you’re talking about. That’s how far we have come.”
23:15 (IST) : On Basweshwar – “What Lord Basweshwar did for women empowerment, democracy & social causes is an example for world.”
23:10 (IST): Modi stresses the need to create an ecosystem where people can thrive.
22: 55 (IST): Modi’s priorities – to ensure children are educated, youth have jobs and the elderly have access to medicines.
22:45 (IST) : “I’m just an ordinary man like you. Think of me like one of you. The position I occupy is about work. I am a lifelong student. My equity is the support of a billion Indians. I may make mistakes but I will never do it with the wrong intentions. I have been Gujarat’s longest serving chief minister. I have never done and will never do anything with the wrong intention. I never though I could change the country. But I believe fervently that if there are a million problems in India, we have a billion solutions. That is where I draw my strength from.”
22:40 (IST) : “I do not need to read books to understand poverty. I have lived in poverty, I know what it is to be poor and belong to the backward sections of society. I want to work for the poor, the marginalised and the downtrodden.”
22:30 (IST) : Modi speaks on Kathua rape case – “Can’t politicise rape of a child.”
“When a child is raped, what could be worse? Is that the time to compare metrics versus the earlier governments? When a girl comes home late, all parents are worried. When a boy goes out and comes home late, why don’t we ask him where he was? Look, I have lived the life of a poor man, I don’t need to learn about it from a book. Nothing is more important to me than to make our country safer, cleaner….”
22.20 (IST) : On surgical strikes against Pakistan – “In our entire history, we have never tried to grab land from anyone else. We must remain vigilant, we must remain victorious at all times. But if someone’s made a business out of terrorism, then I know how to hit back.”
Proud of our army, says Modi.
22:10 (IST) : “During the freedom struggle, Mahatma Gandhi did something very different. He turned it into a mass movement.He told every person that whatever you are doing will contribute to India’s freedom. Need of the hour is to make development a mass movement.”
22:05 (IST) : “People have more expectations from us because they know that we can deliver. People know that when they say something, the Government will listen and do it.”
22:00 (IST) : “Impatience is not a bad thing. If a person has a cycle, person then aspires for a scooter. If a person has a scooter, person aspires for a car. It is nature to aspire. India is getting increasingly aspirational.”
21:56 (IST): “The moment you become satisfied, life does not move forward. In every age, in every situation, we must strive to keep do something new. That must be the force driving us. If someone says that impatience is not a virtue, they’re probably old.”
21.50 (IST): Modi begins speaking at London’s Westminster Hall.
