Opening his 3rd Independence Day address, Prime Minister Narendra Modi opened with what would set the tone for his talk, a showcase of his government. He said that he if spoke at length, the address would go on for weeks! Instead of ‘karya’ (achievements) he said he would focus on the government’s ‘Karya Sanskriti’ (culture of achievement) I will continue to work to ensure thali of poor is not affected by inflation We have not let inflation cross 6%, even as the previous government saw it touch 10%. Drought has led to price rice in the last 2 years. However, Modi added, this is being dealt with by increased sowing of pulses, which ha increased 1.5 times this year. Agriculture: If farmers in my country get adequate water, they can turn 'soil' into 'gold' To fight malnutrition, food godowns with 15 lakh ton capacity have been built, and there is increased emphasis on food processing, while also doubling farmers' income by 2022. 90 irrigation schemes will be re-opened, and India's farmer base will receive 77,000 solar pumps to make farming affordable. Once upon a time, India’s farmer even faced police violence while fighting manure shortage for the fields – this has been addressed. Bonuses and incentive schemes have motivated farmers to sow 1.5 times the amount of dal, and thereby solve the dal price crisis. Farmers will soon be selling their produce directly in online mandis. Making women financial independent Over 3.5 crore families have benefited from the MUDRA loan scheme, and the government has initiated a 26 week maternity scheme for pregnant women. Terror Speaking on the Peshawar school attack, he said that Parliamentarians had tears in their eyes. While India has empathy for victims of this terror, he hinted at Pakistan saying that some countries glorify terror.

Violence has no place in our society: PM @narendramodi

— PMO India (@PMOIndia) August 15, 2016

India will never sink in the face of terror and Maoism. We need to rise above divisions of caste and creed. India’s values have kept India together, One Rank One Pension After years of delay, the Modi government was able to pass the One Rank One Pension (OROP), in the memory of the 35,000 jawans who have died at the border. Foreign policy, Pakistan, and Balochistan PM Modi thanked the people of Gilgit-Baltistan region, Balochistan and the people of Pakistan-occupied-Kashmir for their support of India. Global warming, agriculture and affordable power and water We have given impetus to 'per drop, more crop' initiative. I will continue to strive hard to ensure that this inflation doesn't affect the food plate of poor. We have been blessed with monsoon, this year. Sowing has therefore increased, this will help us meet demand shortfall.

One nation, one grid and one price- we have worked on this: PM @narendramodi

— PMO India (@PMOIndia) August 15, 2016

The LED bulb that was priced at Rs 350 each, is now sold at Rs 50 each. We can contribute a lot to curb global warming by using IED bulbs and saving energy. 13 crore bulbs distributed and our target is 77 crore. Laying of power transmission lines increased to 50,000 kms in a year from 30,000-35,000-km earlier. From 18,000 villages that lived in darkness in 2014, India has given 10,000 villages electricity in 500 days. Sanitation India’s Swacch Bharat movement has resulted in 2 crore toilets, and made over 70,000 villages open defecation free. Road construction The work of village roads started under Atal Behari Vajpayee ji, we have taken that forward. Earlier, we used to make 70-75 kms of roads in a day. Today we make over 100 kms in a day. Giving India access to social security schemes We have connected 70 crore Indians to Aadhaar and social security schemes. Gas connections In last 60 years, 14 crore were given gas connections, while my govt provided gas connections to over 4 crore people in just 60 weeks Taxation We want to change the situation where people are scared of income tax authorities, particularly among middle class families: PM Global recognition

GST will give strength to our economy and all parties are to be thanked for its passage: PM @narendramodi

— PMO India (@PMOIndia) August 15, 2016

Today, global agencies laud India’s progress and reforms. The nation has improved rankings in Ease of Doing Business, leaving behind many countries in GDP growth. Modi also gave credit to all parties for coming together to pass the GST. Fighting corruption Modi referred to the corruption in coal block auction, which today is done transparently. Booming Public Sector companies Today Air India, Shipping Corporation of India and BSNL, all much maligned companies that were always in losses, are profitable.