Last Updated:February 27, 2026, 22:19 IST

The Prime Minister drew a sharp contrast between the ‘slow and delayed’ India of the past and the ‘Fast and Fearless’ India of 2026

A significant portion of the Prime Minister’s speech was dedicated to the recent AI Summit, which he described as a moment of immense national pride. Image/News18

At the News18 Rising Bharat Summit on Friday, Prime Minister Narendra Modi delivered a powerful address that balanced a scathing critique of the political opposition with a soaring vision of a self-confident, “Aatmanirbhar” India. The Prime Minister asserted that when the “hidden strength” of a nation awakens, it achieves accomplishments that amaze the world. However, he lamented that despite decades of independence, certain political factions remain shackled to a “colonial mindset”, acting as a “toolkit” of opposition that belittles national achievements on the global stage.

The AI Summit and the ‘Bankruptcy’ of the Opposition

A significant portion of the Prime Minister’s speech was dedicated to the recent AI Summit, which he described as a moment of immense national pride where India moved from being a consumer to a creator of technology. He sharply criticised the Congress party for attempting to turn this global celebration into a political spectacle. PM Modi remarked that the “country’s oldest party” revealed its “ideological bankruptcy” by attempting to defame the nation in front of foreign guests. He suggested that when frustration from repeated failure takes over, it manifests as arrogance that harms the country’s image. He further noted that the Congress often uses the name of Mahatma Gandhi as a shield to hide its mistakes while reserving all credit for a single family when things go well.

The Digital Revolution: From Darkness to Global Leadership

The Prime Minister highlighted the dramatic shift in India’s digital landscape, particularly through the “JAM Trinity” (Jan Dhan, Aadhaar, and Mobile). He noted that while ATMs arrived in India far later than in developed nations, the country has leapfrogged to become a global leader in digital payments. This infrastructure has revolutionised welfare, allowing the government to transfer Rs 24 lakh crore directly to beneficiaries, effectively plugging the leakages that were once accepted as an unavoidable truth. He pointed out that an India where 30 million families lived in darkness before 2014 is now a global leader in solar power and boasts the world’s third-largest metro rail network.

Strategic Confidence and the End of Delays

The Prime Minister drew a sharp contrast between the “slow and delayed” India of the past and the “Fast and Fearless” India of 2026. He cited the transformation of the Indian Railways through Vande Bharat and Namo Bharat as evidence of this new pace. On the economic front, he noted that India has managed to control inflation—which was once in double digits—and has successfully negotiated trade deals with developed nations from a position of “Aatmanirbhar” strength. He declared that India has officially become the “world’s growth engine”, driven by a generation of Gen Z voters who are ready to teach a lesson to those immersed in “family loyalty” rather than national duty.

A Critique of State-Level Obstruction

The Prime Minister also took aim at regional governments for stalling central welfare schemes. He highlighted that the Ayushman Bharat health scheme, providing free treatment up to Rs 5 lakh, remains unimplemented in West Bengal. Similarly, he noted that while 9.5 lakh houses were allotted to the poor in Tamil Nadu under PM Awas Yojana, construction for 3 lakh homes has stalled because the DMK government is “not taking interest”. He added that such delays are a result of insincere intentions, contrasting them with his government’s mission to ensure that no citizen is left behind in the journey towards a developed Bharat.

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