‘No longer small dreams-: Modi-s message to India on Independence Day (VIDEO)

‘No longer small dreams-: Modi-s message to India on Independence Day (VIDEO)

The prime minister has pointed to manufacturing, chips, nuclear power, and digital growth as pillars of a developed India
Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Saturday outlined the country’s achievements and priorities for future growth as the world’s largest democracy marked its 80th Independence Day.
Addressing the nation after at Delhi’s iconic Red Fort, Modi cited India’s rapid economic growth from being one of the ‘Fragile Five’ economies in 2013 to a $4.15 trillion, fast-growing major economy, and said the country is emerging in the eyes of the world as a widely accepted and respected nation.
The ‘Fragile Five’, was a term for Türkiye, Brazil, India, South Africa, and Indonesia, which were overly dependent on unpredictable foreign investments and large current account deficits to fuel their economic growth.
Our country is not going to move forward with small dreams, Modi said, noting the country rises through the strength of its dreams, its resolutions, and its capabilities.
Fuel for growthListing India’s achievements in the last 12 years since his Bharatiya Janata Party came to power, Modi said the country’s defense production has increased fourfold, electronic manufacturing has increased sevenfold, and digital transactions have increased 100 times.
Read more Modi pointed to the success of his Make-in-India initiative, and cited the three chip plants that the country has built, with plans to add eight more. Chips are indispensable; without them, the world would come to a standstill, he said, as Indian positions itself to benefit from the global demand for chips driven by the boom in artificial intelligence and data centers.
This, however, raises the demands for energy security, Modi acknowledged, stating that the South Asian nation will need electricity on a very large scale.
The Indian leader reiterated the country’s target of achieving a capacity of 100 GW of nuclear power by 2047 and highlighted the need for accelerating offshore exploration to find oil and gas that could replace imported energy that makes the national economy vulnerable to external shocks.
⚛️ AI Needs Power, PM Modi Wants Nuclear To Bring ItPointing to GPUs, AI and data centres, Modi said, “Energy security is the need of our times,” adding that India will need electricity “on a very large scale” and is targeting 100 GW of nuclear power by 2047.The SHANTI Act,…
— RT_India (@RT_India_news) New Delhi in December 2025 passed the SHANTI Act (the Sustainable Harnessing and Advancement of Nuclear Energy for Transforming India Act), which modernizes India’s nuclear framework and opens the door to greater private sector participation in India’s nuclear energy industry, which has been lacking so far.
The country currently operates 24 nuclear power reactors across seven different sites with a total installed capacity of 8.78 GW. This includes Russia-built Kudankulam designed to house six VVER-1000 reactors with a total planned capacity of 6,000 MW. Units 1 and 2 were connected to the national grid in 2013 and 2016, respectively, while units 3, 4, 5, and 6 are at different stages of implementation and construction.
Overall, India currently has ten reactor units with a combined capacity of 8,000 MW are under construction, while pre-project activities for ten additional reactors are also underway.


Focus on self-relaence It is our conviction that India must not be dependent on other countries. We must become self-reliant, Modi stated, calling for strengthening the country’s capabilities and protecting national interests.
Read more Modi outlined seven broad areas that he said would be central to his government’s goal of turning India into a developed country by 2047. These included manufacturing, agriculture and food production, technology and innovation, connectivity – including high-speed rail – defense production, the green a