NEW DELHI: Prime Minister Narendra Modi delivered his 10th consecutive Independence Day address from the Red Fort which also marks his last address before the 2024 Lok Sabha polls and he declared that he will be back on 15th August to present the achievements of the country, if people's blessings are with him.

PM Modi was received at the Red Fort by Defence Minister Rajnath Singh, Minister of State for Defence Ajay Bhatt, Defence Secretary Giridhar Aramane, and three service chiefs. 

In his 90-minute speech, after he unfurled the national flag at Delhi's Red Fort, PM Modi +spoke of the massive opportunities before India, while he also took a swipe at political rivals. He listed his Mission 2047 foundation saying that this was his blueprint to transform India into a developed nation and drive the nation towards the path of glory. 

PM Modi who in his earlier speeches, addressed the people of the country as 'My beloved brothers and sisters' today departed from his usual style, and addressed the nation as a 'Parivarjan' (family members) of 140 crore Indian citizens. 

Nearly 2000 people from different professions and walks of life including nurses, teachers, farmers, fishermen and sarpanches of vibrant villages had been invited as special guests for the programme. The government said this was in line with the centre's vision of 'Jan Bhagidari' (people's partnership) initiative that stresses all governments' all-inclusive priorities. Seventy-five couples from each State/Union Territory, in their traditional attire, have also been invited to witness the ceremony at Red Fort.

PM Modi stressed that the next five years are very crucial for India to ensure that the country's aspirations are met by the time it celebrates 100 years of Independence. He said that he did not doubt that by the time India commemorates its 100 years of independence in 2047, it will have transformed into a developed nation.

According to the prime minister, he guaranteed that in the next five years, over 13.5 crore poor people of India will come out of poverty and become part of neo-middle, middle classes. After listing this vision he said, "This is Modi's guarantee. India will become the third largest global economy in the next five years."

The PM highlighted the 'track record' of his government and recounted various efforts made to empower people and develop the nation. I am giving an account of 10 years from Red Fort, he said, "We built a strong economy, stopped leakages," and went on to highlight the impetus from India's technological advancements, propelling the country toward a fresh era of global prominence. 

PM Modi cited successes in meeting various targets and said, "Our track record attests to the fact that India fulfils what it resolves." He also lauded the contribution of the youth and said that those from tier 2, and tier 3 cities were also making a lot of impact in various fields, including start-ups that had contributed immensely to the growth story of the country.

The PM also touched on the contentious issue of Manipur. Talking about the violence in the North-Eastern state he said that the nation was with Manipur. "We will find a solution through peace. Path for solution in Manipur will be found through peace," he said adding that the Centre and state government are all making efforts for a solution and will continue to do so.

PM Modi also took a swipe at the opposition and said that the evils perpetrated by them will hamper the growth of the nation and warned the country to be cautious of three evils, namely corruption, dynasty and appeasement. 

Political experts have been keenly looking forward to the political messages in PM Modi's Independence Day address and while in the past he has largely not taken a direct confrontation with the opposition parties mostly sticking to the governance reforms that the government has taken. However this time before the parliamentary elections he made a reference to the opposition parties.

The Independence Day culminated the 'Azadi Ka Amrit Mahotsav' celebrations, which were launched by the prime minister from Sabarmati Ashram in Ahmedabad, Gujarat on March 12, 2021, and has now ushered the country into 'Amrit Kaal' to realise his vision of making India a developed country by 2047.