From self-reliance to Viksit Bharat: Rajnath Singh highlights India’s 12-year transformation under Narendra Modi government
New Delhi. Defence Minister Rajnath Singh on July 4 said India’s transformation over the past 12 years reflects a journey from overcoming shortages to achieving self-reliance and self-confidence, with the country now laying the foundations for becoming a developed nation under the vision of Viksit Bharat.
Addressing an event organised by a media organisation in the national capital, Singh said the Narendra Modi government’s first term focused on addressing deficiencies, expanding opportunities and changing governance practices, while the second term converted aspirations into achievements and accelerated the drive towards self-reliance.
He said the government’s third term is being guided by the principles of ‘Reform, Perform, Transform’ to build a strong base for a developed India, expressing confidence that the country would emerge as a fully developed nation during the government’s fourth term.
Highlighting the country’s progress since 2014, the Defence Minister said initiatives such as ‘Make in India’, which initially faced scepticism, have evolved into major success stories and have significantly enhanced India’s global standing.
“Earlier, the world often overlooked India’s views on international issues. Today, the global community listens carefully to India’s perspective,” Singh said.
He pointed to the success of the India Semiconductor Mission, launched in 2021, noting that despite initial doubts, India produced its own semiconductor chips last year following the establishment of semiconductor parks based on the plug-and-play infrastructure model.
On the defence front, Singh said India’s annual defence production reached a record ₹1.78 lakh crore ($18.7 billion) in the financial year 2025-26, nearly three times the level recorded in 2014-15.
Defence exports, he added, have also witnessed unprecedented growth, crossing ₹38,000 crore compared to just ₹686 crore in 2013-14, representing a nearly 57-fold increase and reflecting growing international confidence in indigenous defence platforms developed under the ‘Make in India’ initiative.
The Defence Minister also highlighted the expansion of India’s manufacturing sector, including mobile phone production, automobile exports, indigenous locomotive manufacturing and the rapid growth of digital infrastructure.
Referring to India’s digital transformation, Singh said the Unified Payments Interface recorded 22.35 billion transactions worth ₹29 lakh crore in April alone, while its international adoption continues to expand.
He added that India’s indigenously developed 5G technology is being rolled out rapidly across the country and efforts are already underway to develop next-generation 6G technology.
Singh also credited the government’s Direct Benefit Transfer architecture and the Jan Dhan-Aadhaar-Mobile, or JAM, trinity for improving welfare delivery and reducing leakages in government schemes.
According to him, direct transfers amounting to ₹51 lakh crore have been credited to beneficiaries’ bank accounts while leakages worth approximately ₹4.3 lakh crore have been prevented.
He described the Goods and Services Tax as an example of successful cooperative federalism, saying that despite initial concerns, it has strengthened coordination between the Centre and states and union territories.
The Defence Minister further cited the abrogation of Article 370 in Jammu and Kashmir and the government’s campaign against Left Wing extremism as examples of tackling long-standing national challenges once considered difficult to resolve.
On the economic front, Singh said the government views entrepreneurs as job creators and wealth generators, adding that reforms such as the Jan Vishwas initiative have improved the ease of doing business and supported India’s rise towards becoming the world’s third-largest economy.
He noted that India has emerged as the world’s third-largest startup ecosystem, with the number of startups increasing from around 500 in 2014 to more than two lakh today, while the number of unicorns has risen from four to 125.
Emphasising the importance of India’s civilisational heritage, Singh said cultural preservation has progressed alongside economic development. He cited projects such as the Kashi Vishwanath Dham Corridor, Mahakal Lok and the Maa Kamakhya Divya Lok Pariyojana as efforts to revive and preserve the country’s cultural identity.
He also referred to the installation of the Sengol in Parliament, the restoration of the prominence of Vande Mataram, the return of ancient artefacts from abroad and the digitisation of historical manuscripts as part of these efforts.
Turning to the role of the media, the Defence Minister said journalism has become more important than ever in an era marked by an abundance of information, where the challenge lies not in access to information but in ensuring its accuracy and credibility.
He observed that journalism is being reshaped by technologies such as artificial intelligence but argued that technology cannot replace human creativity and judgment.
“The future of journalism will depend on balancing the speed and precision offered by AI with human empathy and emotional intelligence that preserve credibility and trust,” he said.
Singh stressed that journalism should not merely disseminate information but should help guide society, expose the truth and strengthen democratic institutions.
Warning against the dangers of misinformation, particularly in matters concerning national security and the armed forces, he said inaccurate reporting can damage social harmony and adversely affect the morale of defence personnel.
“Being the first to report a story is important, but ensuring that the information is accurate is even more critical, especially when issues related to defence forces, national security and the sacrifices of soldiers are involved,” the Defence Minister said, urging the media to uphold the principles of accuracy, objectivity and impartiality.
