New Delhi [India], January 25 : Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Sunday said Indian start-ups are today working across cutting-edge sectors ranging from artificial intelligence and space to nuclear energy, semiconductors and green hydrogen, and stressed that quality must become the defining identity of Indian products.
Addressing the nation during the 130th episode of his monthly radio programme Mann Ki Baat, the Prime Minister lauded the country's young entrepreneurs and called upon them to make excellence the benchmark for everything manufactured in India.
"AI, Space, Nuclear Energy, Semiconductors, Mobility, Green Hydrogen, Biotechnology, you name it, and you'll find one Indian start-up or the other working in that sector. I salute all my young friends who are associated with one start-up or the other, or want to start one of their own," the Prime Minister said.
Highlighting India's rapid economic progress, PM Modi urged industry and start-ups to place a strong emphasis on quality. He said the era of compromising on standards was over and India must now be known globally for top-quality products. "Be it our textiles, technology, electronics or even packaging, the connotation of an Indian product should become 'top quality'. Let us make excellence our benchmark," he said, reiterating his vision of "Zero Defect, Zero Effect".
The Prime Minister also noted that India has emerged as the world's third-largest start-up ecosystem. Marking the 10th anniversary of the Start-up India initiative, he said the ecosystem has grown from fewer than 500 start-ups in 2016 to over 2 lakh recognised entities today, driven largely by innovation and the risk-taking spirit of the youth.
During the programme, PM Modi announced that the India AI Impact Summit will be held next month, bringing together global technology experts. He said the summit would showcase India's progress and achievements in artificial intelligence on the world stage.
The Prime Minister also linked innovation and quality to the broader goal of building a 'Viksit Bharat', stating that sustained focus on high standards would accelerate India's development journey.
The episode also carried messages ahead of Republic Day, with the Prime Minister paying tribute to the framers of the Constitution and underlining the importance of National Voters' Day. He described a voter as the "soul of democracy" and urged young citizens to register as voters upon turning 18.
PM Modi also expressed appreciation for grassroots-level election workers, saying their efforts keep India's democracy vibrant and strong.
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