Image: Reuters Berita 24 English - India will try to become a developed country within 25 years, Prime Minister Narendra Modi said in a spee...
Image: Reuters |
Berita 24 English - India will try to become a developed country within 25 years, Prime Minister Narendra Modi said in a speech for the country's National Day on Monday. To do this, the government will support domestic production in areas like power, defense, and digital technology.
As India celebrates its 75th year of freedom from British colonial rule, Modi spoke from the 17th-century Red Fort in Delhi. He told young people to "aim big" and give their best years to the country.
In his 75-minute speech in Hindi, Modi, who is 71 years old, wore a turban with the colors of the Indian flag. He said, "We must make India a developed country in the next 25 years, in our lifetime."
"It's a big goal, and we should work as hard as we can to reach it."
India is currently considered a lower-middle income economy by the World Bank. This is a category for countries where the gross national income per person is between $1,086 and $4,255. Countries with high incomes, like the U.S., have a per capita income of $13,205 or more.
India has the sixth largest economy in the world, and its current fiscal year, which ends in March 2023, is expected to grow faster than any other major economy, by more than 7%.
Many experts say that India's economy could grow to become the third largest in the world by 2050, after the United States and China. However, India's current per capita income of about $2,100 may remain low compared to that of many other countries.
India is expected to pass China as the most populous country in the world next year. It has about 1.4 billion people, which is more than China has.
Countries like the United States already see India as a future threat to China's dominance in Asia and other parts of the world. On India's national day on Sunday, U.S. Vice President Joe Biden congratulated the country and said that the U.S. and India were "indispensable partners" who would continue to work together to solve global problems in the years to come.
Pakistan, which used to be part of British India and got its independence at the same time as India, celebrated its independence day on Sunday.