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Madison encore in Sydney
Madison encore in Sydney, Addressing a frenzied crowd, Modi took a dig at the previous governments saying while they were happy to make laws he was \"happier to remove\" them.
Modi wows Indian Australians at Allphones Arena
- Sets two-month deadline for merger of OCI, PIO status
- Hopes that Oz cos will invest in rail infrastructure in India
- Tells Indian Australians to build toilets in villages
- ‘The power of this democracy brought me here’
- Sydney Cultural Center will be established by India
Sydney: Making his way onto the stage amid drum beats, cymbals clashing, wild applause and chants of "Modi, Modi" at the Allphones Arena in Sydney's Olympic Park, Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Monday wowed the Indian diaspora in Australia and listed out his priorities to take the country forward.
The first Indian PM to visit Australia in 28 years, Modi spoke for nearly 90 minutes to address more than 20,000 people.
He assured a visa-on-arrival facility for Australian tourists and announced a two-month deadline for the long-pending merger of OCI (Overseas Citizen of India) and PIO (Person of India Origin) status ahead of the Pravasi Bhartiya Divas to be held from January 7 in Ahmedabad. This was a clear bid to woo the Indian diaspora from whom he sought support for his ambitious Clean India campaign.
Addressing a frenzied crowd, Modi took a dig at the previous governments saying while they were happy to make laws he was "happier to remove" them.
"Let's open the windows let fresh air come in," Modi said referring to his government's efforts to weed out obsolete laws. Touched by the grand reception, Modi said he was honoured and humbled and will never forget this day. "I know that behind this affection lies expectations. Yes. We want to create the India you are dreaming of."
Modi had announced merger of PIO and OCI during his visit to the US in September but had not given a timeline then. The Prime Minister also referred to economic reforms unveiled by his government and said India has become an attractive destination for investment.
He also said FDI in Railways has been hiked to 100 per cent and hoped that Australian companies will invest in creating rail infrastructure in the country.
He referred to Swami Vivekananda's dream of seeing Mother India as a 'Vishva Guru' once again, and said he believed that dream would be a reality. "Do you share the dream", he asked the cheering crowd.
The Prime Minister said that he feels a greater sense of responsibility as he is the first Prime Minister born in independent India. "We did not have the fortune to fight for the country's independence. We could not die for India. But we can live for India. So we will live and struggle for India. Today 125 crore Indians share that dream," he said.
"It took 28 years for an Indian PM to make the few hours journey to Australia. Now you will not have to wait 28 years," the Prime Minister said. He also highlighted the values of democracy and the love for cricket that India and Australia share. Speaking about Jan Dhan scheme, he said 70 million bank accounts have been opened in the last 10 weeks under the scheme and a total of Rs 5,000 crore has been deposited by the account holders. He also spoke of the need to improve access to clean water, electricity and invited the Indian-Australian community to give back to the Motherland in whatever way they could.
