New Delhi: On a day when the Opposition moved a motion of no-confidence against his government in the Lok Sabha, Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Wednesday made a strong pitch for a third term for the National Democratic Alliance (NDA). Speaking after inaugurating the world-class International Exhibition-cum-Convention Centre (IECC) complex at Pragati Maidan in New Delhi, he promised to make India the world's third-largest economy in his third term.


COMMERCIAL BREAK
SCROLL TO CONTINUE READING

PM Modi named the new complex -- that is set to host the much-awaited G20 Summit this September -- Bharat Mandapam and said that it is a call for India's capabilities and new energy of the nation. "It is a philosophy of India's grandeur and willpower," he said.


He said that the redeveloped IECC complex is a beautiful gift by Indians to our democracy as we celebrate the 75th anniversary of Independence. 


"The entire world will witness India's strides and growing stature from here when the G20 Summit takes place in a few weeks from now at the venue," Modi added.


He underlined that Bharat Mandapam will be hugely beneficial for exhibitors from all across the globe and that it will become a medium for conference tourism in India. The complex will act as a platform for showcasing the capabilities of the country's startups, become a witness to the performance of artists and actors and provide a platform to showcase the efforts of handicraft artisans, he said. 



"Bharat Mandapam will become a reflection of the Atmanirbhar  Bharat and Vocal For Local campaign," the prime minister told the gathering.


Bharat Mandapam should have been developed decades ago


Without naming anyone, Prime Minister Modi slammed naysayers for trying to block development projects and said that infrastructure like Bharat Mandapam should have been developed decades ago. He also emphasized the need to carry on creating infrastructure despite Opposition from 'vested interests' and stressed that no society can progress by working in a fragmented manner. 


Bharat Mandapam is an example of the far-sighted holistic working style, he said and stressed that we have to 'think big' and 'achieve big' targets in order to be developed.  


"The entire nation is witness to the pillars of development of the present government's this term and the previous term," Modi said as he affirmed that the development journey of India is now 'unstoppable'. 


'Modi's guarantee'


PM Modi underlined that India was the 10th largest economy in the world when the present government came to power in 2014, but as of today, India is the 5th largest economy in the world. As per track record, he assured that India's name will be among the top three economies of the world in his third term. 


"This is Modi's guarantee", he said and exuded confidence that the pace of the development journey of India will increase manifold and the citizens would see their dreams come true in the third term of the NDA government.



Elaborating on some statistics to showcase the developmental agenda of the ruling Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) government, the prime minister said that today India is witnessing a revolution of rebuilding as in the last nine years, Rs 34 lakh crore have been spent on infrastructure. 


"This year too, capital expenditure is kept at Rs 10 lakh crore," he said, adding that India is working at an 'unprecedented speed and scale'. 


He stated that in the last nine years, the electrification of 40 thousand km of railway lines took place as compared to just 20 thousand in the seven decades before that. 


"Before 2014, 600 meter per month metro line was laid, today 6 km long metro line is being laid every month. Today, the country has 7.25 km long rural roads compared to just 4 lakh km in 2014. The number of airports increased from about 70 to about 150. City Gas distribution too reached 600 cities compared to just 60 in 2014," Modi said.


Infrastructure developments in Delhi 


PM Narendra Modi underlined the infrastructure developments in New Delhi in the last few years and spoke about the newly inaugurated Parliament building and said that it instills pride in every Indian. He also gave examples of monuments like the National War Memorial, the Police Memorial, and the Baba Saheb Ambedkar Memorial in the national capital. 


He also touched upon the Pradhan Mantri Sangrahalay, which provides a glimpse into the lives of every Prime Minister that India has ever witnessed. 


Modi also informed that the development of 'Yuge Yugeen Bharat', which will become the world's largest museum, is also coming up fast in Delhi.