India-Japan ties to become stronger in ‘New India’: PM Modi tells diaspora

Tokyo, June 27: Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Thursday addressed the Indian diaspora in Kobe, Japan lauding the relations between the two countries.

Addressing the gathering PM Modi said "130 Crore Indians formed an even stronger govt. This is big. After three decades, for the first time, a govt with clear majority formed govt for the second time in a row."

The PM reiterated that his government will follow the path of inclusiveness. "Sabka saath sabka vikas aur usmein logon ne amrit milaya sabka vishwas. We are going ahead with this mantra. India will be made stronger," he said.

The PM further described Japan as a key ally for India. "When it comes to India's relations with the world, Japan holds an important position. These relations are not from today but date back to centuries. It has harmony and respect for each other's culture in its foundation," Modi told the gathering.

"Swami Vivekananda, Gurudev Rabindranath Tagore, Mahatma Gandhi, Neta ji Subhash Chandra Bose, Justice Radhabinod Pal, many Indians strengthened India's relationship with Japan. And that's why after World War II, India and Japan's relationship grew all the more strong.

"After I became PM in 2014, I got an opportunity to strengthen India-Japan friendship, together with my friend PM Shinzo Abe. We took our diplomatic relations beyond the purview of capitals and ambassadors, and took them directly among the public. Besides Delhi and Ahmedabad, I had the opportunity to take PM Abe to Varanasi. He visited my parliamentary constituency and participated in the Ganga aarti there. Whenever he got the opportunity, he spoke of this divine experience," PM Modi said.

Thanking the Indian diaspora for playing a vital role in the recently concluded Indian elections, in which Modi was voted back to power with stronger mandate, the prime minister said while several Indians from Japan came to India and worked on the field, many used social media like Twitter to spread the message of the democratic process.

He noted that 61 crore voters, 10 lakh polling stations, over 40 lakh EVMs and more than 8,000 candidates took part in the world's largest democratic process.

The number of voters who participated in the Lok Sabha elections exceeded the population of almost all countries, barring China, he said.

Modi said his government's main areas of focus were social security and infrastructure development. "We'll launch Chandrayaan-2 in few months and by 2022 we're planning to launch India's maiden human spaceflight program-Gaganyaan," he added.