Kurnool: Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Thursday said that the 21st century belongs to 140 crore Indians and that the country will become “Viksit Bharat” (Developed India) by 2047 even as he attacked the Congress saying the grand old party neglected the power sector.
Hailing the country’s Make in India ecosystem, he said, “we saw the might” of home-made “equipment” in Operation Sindoor, the military offensive launched at cross border terror launchpads in Pakistan, post the April 22 Pahalgam terror attack.
Referring to the recent developments such as the hike in Income Tax exemption to Rs 12 lakh and GST rate reforms, Modi said the vision of the NDA government is “citizen-centric development” and pointed out that continuous reforms are being taken up to make people’s lives easy.
“As (Andhra CM) Chandrababu Naidu said, by 2047, the centenary year of independence, Viksit Bharat will happen. I can say confidently that the 21st century is going to be India’s century. The 21st century belongs to 140 crore Indians,” the PM said in his address after inaugurating and laying the foundation stones for projects worth over Rs 13,000 crore.
Modi said today the world is seeing India as a new manufacturing centre of the 21st century and the basis of this success is the vision of a self-reliant India even as Andhra Pradesh is becoming a major centre for its success.
He alleged that 11 years ago, when the Congress government was in power, the per capita electricity consumption was less than 1,000 units and at that time, the country had to face challenges such as blackouts. Electricity poles were not even installed in our villages.
“Friends, from clean energy to the total energy production of the country, India is making new records in every sector. Today, electricity has reached every village in the country. Electricity consumption per capita has increased to 1,400 units,” he said.
Earlier, PM Modi inaugurated and laid the foundation for multiple projects worth Rs 13,430 crore here spreading across the state. The projects span across key sectors such as industry, power transmission, roads, railways, defence manufacturing, and petroleum and natural gas.
He laid the foundation for the Transmission System Strengthening at Kurnool-III Pooling Station at an investment of over Rs 2,880 crore.
Likewise, he laid the foundation stones for the Orvakal Industrial Area in Kurnool and the Kopparthy Industrial Area in Kadapa, with a total investment of over Rs 4,920 crore.
Jointly developed by the National Industrial Corridor Development and Implementation Trust (NICDIT) and Andhra Pradesh Industrial Infrastructure Corporation Ltd (APIIC), these modern multi-sectoral industrial hubs feature plug-and-play infrastructure and a walk-to-work concept.
These hubs are expected to attract Rs 21,000 crore in investments.