Prime Minister Narendra Modi shakes hands with Britain’s Prime Minister Theresa May during a bilateral meeting at 10 Downing Street in London. (Source: Reuters)
Prime Minister Narendra Modi, who began his four-day visit to the United Kingdom on Wednesday, held wide-ranging talks with his British counterpart Theresa May on redefining and infusing new energy into the bilateral engagement after Britain’s exit from the European Union (EU). The two heads of state discussed a wide range of issues including terrorism, visas and immigration. He also paid tributes to Lingayat philosopher Basaveshwara at Albert Embankment Gardens.
Britain’s Prince Charles, meanwhile, welcomed PM Modi at an exhibition organised to celebrate India’s role in the history of science and technology. “The Prime Minister Modi and Prince Charles visited the exhibition on 5,000 years of Science and Technology in India,” tweeted Raveesh Kumar, Official Spokesperson at the Ministry of External Affairs.
Later, PM Modi interacted with the Indian diaspora at the mega event, titled “Bharat Ki Baat, Sabke Saath”, where he said “The need of the hour is to make development a mass movement.”
We have a million problems but we have a billion people who can solve them: PM Modi
I am like any common citizen. And, I also have drawbacks like normal people do, says PM
18,000 villages did not have electricity. So many women do not have access to toilets. These realities of our nation did not let me sleep. I was determined to bring about a positive change in the lives of India's poor: PM
I do not need to read books to understand poverty. I have lived in poverty, I know what it is to be poor and belong to the backward sections of society. I want to work for the poor, the marginalised and the downtrodden: PM
Didn't learn about poverty from books, says PM Modi.
Those who like exporting terror, I want to tell them that India has changed and their antics will not be tolerated: PM
We believe in peace. But we will not tolerate those who like to export terror. We will give back strong answers and in the language they understand. Terrorism will never be accepted: PM
Look back at India's history. India has never desired anyone else's territory. During World War 1 and 2 we had no stake but our soldiers took part in the Wars. These were big sacrifices. Look at our role in UN Peacekeeping Forces: PM Modi
Today the need of the hour is to make development a mass movement. Participative democracy makes good governance possible, says PM Modi
During the freedom struggle, Mahatma Gandhi did something very different. He turned it into a mass movement.He told every person that whatever you are doing will contribute to India's freedom. Need of the hour is to make development a mass movement: PM Modi
People have more expectations from us because they know that we can deliver. People know that when they say something, the Government will listen and do it: PM
'Besabri' is not a bad thing. If a person has a cycle, a person aspires a scooter. If a person has a scooter, a person aspires a car. It is natural to aspire. India is getting increasingly aspirational: PM Modi
Prime Minister Narendra Modi said at the Central Hall Westminster that he can only do justice to the nation when he forgets himself.
The person in the Railway Station was Narendra Modi. The person in the Royal Palace in London is the Sevak of 125 crore Indians: PM Modi
My life at the Railway Station taught me so much. It was about my personal struggles. When you said Royal Palace, it is not about me but about the 125 crore people of India: PM Modi
PM Modi begins his address.
Prime Minister Narendra Modi is at the iconic Central Hall Westminster.
I welcome the UK joining the International Solar Alliance. This gives strength to the fight against global warming. We are doing this for the wellbeing of our future generations: PM Modi
The world is concerned about global warming and actionable work is being done in the form of the International Solar Alliance. Recently, we had a good Summit in India: PM
The Indian diaspora in the UK brings our countries closer. The diaspora is playing a commendable role in furthering the India-UK friendship: PM Modi
The British PM & PM Modi agreed that terrorist & extremist organisations need to be denied space to radicalise, recruit & conduct attacks on innocent people; for this all countries need to work together to disrupt terrorist networks, their financing & movement of terrorists: MEA
British PM and PM Modi agreed to strengthen cooperation to take decisive actions against globally-proscribed terrorists & terror entities to protect citizens, including Lashkar-e-Tayibba, Jaish-e-Mohammad, Hizb-ul-Mujahideen, Haqqani Network, Al Qaeda, ISIS & their affiliates: MEA
Hundreds of noisy protesters greeted Prime Minister Narendra Modi when he arrived in London on Wednesday, demonstrating over a rising tide of sexual violence in India including two particularly brutal rapes.
Holding placards reading "Modi go home" and "we stand against Modi's agenda of hate and greed," they gathered outside Downing Street and parliament as Modi arrived for talks with Prime Minister Theresa May. (Reuters)
The exhibition at Science Museum showcases India’s rich history of science, technology and innovation.
Modi had landed in Britain from Stockholm overnight for bilateral engagements as well as multilateral discussions as part of the Commonwealth Heads of Government Meeting (CHOGM).
The exhibition, hosted by the Prince of Wales, celebrated India's role in the history of science and technology by exploring its contributions to subjects including space exploration and engineering, according to the official Twitter handle of Clarence House, the royal residence in London.
Prime Minister Narendra Modi was welcomed by Britain's Prince Charles at an exhibition organised to celebrate India's role in the history of science and technology. "The Prime Minister Modi and Prince Charles visited the exhibition on 5,000 years of Science and Technology in India," tweeted Raveesh Kumar, Official Spokesperson at the Ministry of External Affairs.
The approval was given as a mark of respect to Indian philosopher and social reformer Basaveshwara for promoting democratic ideals, social justice and gender equality. Basaveshwara (1134-1168) was an Indian philosopher, social reformer and statesman who attempted to create a casteless society and fought against caste and religious discrimination.
The Basaveshwara statue installed at the Albert Embankment is not only the first statue to be unveiled by an Indian Prime Minister in the UK, but is also the first conceptual statue approved by the British Cabinet in the vicinity of the Parliament. The event was organised by The Basaveshwara Foundation, a non-profit organisation-based in the UK that has installed the statue of Basaveshwara. This comes in the backdrop of Karnataka Cabinet recommending to the Centre grant of religious minority status for Lingayat and Veerashaiva Lingayat community.
PM Modi garlands the bust of revered 12th-century Lingayat philosopher, Basaveshwara at Albert Embankment Gardens in London. Today is the birth anniversary of Basaveshwara. BJP national president Amit Shah, who is campaigning in Karnataka for the upcoming polls, also paid his tributes to Basaveshwara earlier today. The Lingayat community, which constitutes a sizeable vote bank in the poll-bound state, have been demanding minority religion status for quite some time. The Congress government in Karnataka have forwarded their demand to the Centre. But the Modi-led government can't act on the recommendation due to the model code of conduct which is in force in Karnataka.
A memorandum of understanding (MoU) on the return of illegal immigrants, which had expired in 2014, will be officially renewed to take into account biometric and other developments in the field, along with a range of nearly a dozen MoUs across different sectors.
The two leaders had wide-ranging talks on redefining and infusing new energy into our bilateral engagement post-Brexit.
Earlier outside Downing Street, a "flash mob" of sari-clad women from Indian Ladies in UK, accompanied by dhols, had gathered to welcome the Indian PM with banners such as "In India, Peace is always in Fashion".
A memorandum of understanding (MoU) on the return of illegal immigrants, which had expired in 2014, will be officially renewed to take into account biometric and other developments in the field, along with a range of nearly a dozen MoUs across different sectors. "A slew of agreements will be signed between India and the UK during the bilateral leg of the visit today. This is a relationship that cuts across all sectors and has reached a very mature level. The prime minister's visit is about what more we can do to build on that," a senior Indian official said.
PM Modi and Prince Charles will attend the exhibition on '5000 Years of Science and Innovation'.
Ahead of his visit, PM Modi said: “My visit to London presents another opportunity for both countries to infuse fresh momentum to this growing bilateral engagement. I will be focusing on enhancing India-UK partnership in the areas of healthcare, innovation, digitisation, electric mobility, clean energy, and cybersecurity. Under the theme of ‘Living Bridge’, I will also have the opportunity to meet people from various walks of life who have enriched the multi-faceted India-UK relationship."
Prime Minister Narendra Modi is in London to attend the Commonwealth Heads of Government Meeting or CHOGM. Apart from his meeting with May, he will head a series of bilateral and multilateral meetings during his visit. PM Modi is also expected to interact briefly with CEOs of the two nations who are working on a new agenda of economic partnership.
'I'm confident that new energy will be added to our ties after today's meeting. I'm happy that UK will be part of International Solar Alliance, I believe this is not only fight against climate change but our responsibility for future generations,' said Modi.
"I hope we can work together for the people of both India and UK," British PM Theresa May said in her meeting with PM Modi.