Gujarat Chief Minister Narendra Modi felicitates iconic singer Lata Mangeshkar at Mumbai's Mahalaxmi Racecourse on the 51st anniversary of her famous song, "Ae mere watan ke logon". Following are the highlights of Mr Modi's speech:
- The words and melody of 'Mere watan ke logo' has a place in the hearts and minds of millions of Indians: Narendra Modi
- Post-independence, 'Mere Watan Ke Logon' has come to symbolise what war is, how soldiers laid down their lives in the battlefield: Modi
- Through 'Mere Watan Ke Logon', every martyr lives on: Modi
- It is India's misfortune that we have lost more soldiers to terrorism than in war: Modi
- Soldiers of a country are its pride, its esteem: Modi
- We are the only country in the world that doesn't have a war memorial for our martyrs: Modi
- Seems the good fortune of making a war memorial will be mine: Modi
- If India decides, and has the right leadership, within 10 years we will be in a position to export arms: Modi
- Should our engineering colleges not have courses to manufacture defence equipment, asks Modi
- When Atal ji was in power, nuclear tests were done, new initiatives for soldiers were undertaken: Modi
- Had it not been for our soldiers, how could the rescue operations have taken place in Uttarakhand: Modi
- On behalf of the entire country, I salute our soldiers: Modi