Modi calls India’s diaspora its ‘strongest ambassadors’ in N.Y. speech

UNIONDALE, New York — Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi addressed a rapturous crowd of more than 13,000 on Sunday in the suburbs of New York City, praising the Indian diaspora before underscoring his country’s growing role on the world stage.

“All of you are, and always have been, the strongest brand ambassadors of India,” Modi said, delivering the speech in Hindi to a packed arena on New York’s Long Island, almost exactly 10 years following an address he gave at Madison Square Garden soon after becoming prime minister in 2014.

Since then, Modi has given addresses in various U.S. cities including San Jose in 2015, Houston in 2019 and Washington last year.

Modi, who won a third term in parliamentary elections this year, also said that India would open new U.S. consulates in Los Angeles and Boston, based upon feedback from the Indian American community.

U.S. Census Bureau data shows 4.8 million Indian Americans nationwide as of 2022, nearly two-thirds of whom are immigrants. They are also the country’s highest-earning ethnic group, with a median household income of $145,000 as of 2022 compared with $100,000 for Asian Americans overall.

“In whichever society we live, we make great contributions,” Modi said. “In America, as doctors, researchers, tech professionals, scientists or as other professionals. You have flown the flag high.”

The speech was the centerpiece of an event put on by the Indo-American Community of USA, an advocacy group for the Indian American community, and coincides with Modi’s visit to the U.S. for the United Nations General Assembly and a summit of the Quad, or Quadrilateral Security Dialogue, hosted by President Joe Biden.

Modi met on Saturday in Delaware with Biden and their fellow quad leaders Japanese Prime Minister Fumio Kishida and Australian Prime Minister Anthony Albanese, where the group announced new maritime initiatives in the Indian Ocean.

“Wherever I go in the world, I hear only praise from every leader about the Indian diaspora,” Modi said, citing a commendation from Biden during their meeting. “It was a moment that touched my heart, this respect for 1.4 billion Indians. This respect is for you.”

For many of the Indian Americans attending, Sunday’s event was the first time seeing this large of a gathering explicitly for their community.

“It’s a fantastic experience. The energy is ‘wow,'” said Shoba Viswanathan, a vice president of development and civic engagement at Indiaspora, a nonprofit Indian American advocacy group based in San Francisco.

“It’s a huge group of people who are highly motivated, with an eagerness to lean into the Indian diaspora identity,” she said. “It’s a great time to be an Indian American.”

The bulk of Modi’s speech focused on highlighting much of the progress India has made under his leadership, with an emphasis on basic infrastructure like clean water and toilets for millions in a country that has overtaken China as the world’s most populous.

While many countries struggle to regain pre-pandemic levels of gross domestic product growth, India has been the world’s fastest-growing large economy — with the International Monetary Fund projecting a 7% increase for 2024-25.

Outlining the vision for his third term, Modi unveiled what he called a “PUSHP” mantra — progressive, unstoppable, spiritual, humanity first and prosperous — pronounced like “pushpa,” the Hindi word for flower.

“All the five petals of the pushpa together create a developed India,” he said.

Though Modi became the first Indian prime minister to win a third consecutive term in more than 60 years, his grip on the world’s largest democracy may not be as strong as it was. His Bharatiya Janata Party won 240 seats in the election that ended in June, down from the 303 it held previously and well below the expected result based on pre-election polling.

With the United Nations General Assembly set to begin, Modi underscored India’s growing role in international affairs. But given India’s diplomatic history as an advocate for the Global South and the Non-Aligned Movement, Modi differentiated India’s influence from an approach intended to increase power.

“We don’t burn like fire,” he said. “We are the sun that gives brightness,” he said.

Nevertheless, in tackling global challenges from new economic growth to climate change, “India’s role will be crucial,” Modi said.

source : asia.nikkei