PM Narendra Modi
NEW DELHI: Emphasising self-reliance as the bedrock of national strength, PM Modi on Friday announced a broad contour of initiatives that will focus on making India secure in different sectors including energy, semiconductor chip manufacturing, critical minerals, digital infrastructure, medicines and fertilisers.He shared that the first ‘Made in India’ semiconductor chips will come to the market by Dec.”The greater a nation’s reliance on others, the more its freedom comes into question. Misfortune arises when depe-ndency becomes a habit, when we do not even realise when we abandon self-reliance and become dependent on others,” said Modi, citing an example of a semiconductor idea that came to the table 60 years ago but was “stalled, delayed and shelved”. “We lost 50-60 years. Many countries mastered semiconductors and establis-hed their strength,” he said.Modi also announced the launch of National Deepwater Exploration Mission to look for oil and gas reserves in the sea and tap ocean resources.The efforts, termed ‘Samudra Manthan’ by the PM, will go on simultaneously with the push for non-fossil fuel energy. It will complement the Deep Ocean Mission, which involves development of submersibles and deep-sea mining technologies. Modi also announced that India’s nuclear energy capacity would increase ten times by 2047. He said work was under way on 10 new reactors. He spoke about National Critical Mineral Mission that aims to secure resources essential for energy, industry, and defence. He stressed the urgent need to produce fertilisers to empower farmers and protect national food security. Highlighting India’s strength as the “pharmacy of the world”, Modi emphasised the need to invest in research and development. “Shouldn’t we be the ones providing the best and most affordable medicines for the welfare of humanity?” he said.
