Bengaluru, March 8 : Speaking at the Viksit Bharat Ambassadors programme in Bengaluru on Friday, Information and Broadcasting (I&B) Minister Anurag Thakur lauded the milestones and landmark achievements of the last 10 years under the NDA government, and attributed them to the ambition and vision of Prime Minister Narendra Modi.

The I&B Minister impressed upon the Viskit Bharat attendees about India’s feats and rising stature in various sectors, ranging from education to health, and economy to technology.

“Today, India has 150 airports, as compared to 75 earlier; today, the National Highway network stands at 1.50 lakh km, as compared to 98 lakh km earlier; today, more than 700 medical colleges are in operation, as compared to about 350 earlier," he pointed out.

Tearing into the previous Congress governments, the minister said that the poor and the marginalised were forced to live in penury for many years after Independence, and it was during the 10 years of Modi government that more than 250 million people were lifted out of the poverty line.

“The work done in the 10 years of Modi government is equal to the work done in 60 years by the Congress governments,” Anurag Thakur stated.

The Sports Minister also encouraged the Viksit Bharat attendees to make this a people-powered movement and become drivers of the massive transformation that is presently underway.

Besides citing the Indian economy’s growing stature, he also said that the country has seen a marked shift from a ‘stagnant to moving economy’, which he attributed to the exemplary leadership of PM Modi.