SYDNEY: Prime Minister Narendra Modi made his way up to the stage amid drum beats, cymbals clashing, wild applause and chants of “Modi, Modi” at the Allphones Arena in Sydney’s Olympic Park. About 16,000 people are attending the event, organised by members of the Indian-Australian community.
Making his first public address in Australia, PM Modi began by saying that the love and honour he was given today is the right of all Indians, not his. He also said, “Mother India has 250 crore arms, 200 crore of those arms are younger than 35. It’s the youth of India who can help us fulfil our potential.”
He talked about cricket and the “cultural history that linked” India and Australia. He also said, to much cheering, “You can take off from India at night and reach Australia the next morning. But it took 28 years for an Indian PM to reach Australia. I promise you will never need to wait that long again.”
On stage, PM Modi greeted among others, an Australia-based cartoonist Ramesh Chandra, who is a cancer patient and had requested a meeting. As he had arrived at the arena, dressed in a white kurta and blue jacket, he was mobbed by enthusiastic fans who clamoured for photographs.
