New Delhi [India], October 27 (ANI): Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Tuesday said India must embrace emerging technologies, innovate boldly and lead the world in developing them, noting that the country had moved beyond adopting technologies developed elsewhere to creating solutions for global challenges.
Addressing the Emerging Science, Technology and Innovation Conclave 2026 in Delhi, PM Modi said the confidence and ambition of young Indian innovators reflected a change in the country’s approach to science and technology.
“The scale at which the youth of India are thinking, and the confidence with which they are moving forward, is truly inspiring,” PM Modi said, recalling his interaction with startup representatives before the event.
Referring to the conclave’s theme, “Emerging Science and Technology”, PM Modi said India had moved beyond an approach in which scientific and technological progress meant catching up with other countries.
“Decades ago, there was a time when science and technology for India simply meant ‘catch up’,” he said.
“When something was innovated in the world, that technology would reach us several years later. We would adopt it, or make minor improvements to it and carry it forward,” he added.
PM Modi said India was now moving forward with a new mindset and greater self-confidence, aiming to develop technologies for both domestic and global needs.
“But today, 21st-century India is moving forward with a new mindset and renewed self-confidence,” PM Modi said.
“Now, our goal—for India, for the world, for today, and for tomorrow—is to create new technologies, define their direction, and build the capability to solve global challenges,” he added.
Emphasising the need to develop rather than merely adopt new technologies, PM Modi said, “India must embrace the technologies of the future, innovate boldly, and lead the world in creating them.”
The Prime Minister also cited India’s space achievements, referring to the country’s Mars mission and its achievement of reaching the Moon’s south polar region.
“We reached the planet Mars on our very first attempt. We reached that South Pole of the Moon where no one has reached before,” he said.
PM Modi also referred to India’s response during the COVID-19 pandemic, citing the development of an indigenous vaccine, large-scale vaccination and the supply of vaccines to other countries.
“We saw an example of this during the Corona era. When many countries around the world were facing challenges regarding the availability of vaccines, India developed its own vaccine. India conducted vaccination on a large scale and also sent vaccines to other countries,” he said.
“This is the self-confidence of 21st-century India,” the Prime Minister added. (ANI)
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