PM Modi conveys heartfelt condolences to Shinzo Abe's widow on tragic loss
Tokyo(PTI): Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Tuesday met with Akie Abe, the widow of slain former Japanese prime minister Shinzo Abe, at the Akasaka Palace here and conveyed his heartfelt condolences on the tragic loss.
Modi, who is here to attend the state funeral of the Japanese leader, earlier joined several global leaders to pay floral tribute to Abe who reshaped Japan's foreign policy, including setting out a bold vision for a quantum leap in ties with India.
"Following the State Funeral, PM @narendramodi had a private meeting with Mrs. Akie Abe at Akasaka Palace. PM recalled his fond memories with "Abe San and conveyed his heartfelt condolences on this tragic loss," the Ministry of External Affairs tweeted.
Prime Minister Modi also had a brief interaction with Prime Minister Kishida to reiterate his condolences, the ministry said.
Earlier in the morning, Modi met Kishida ahead of the ceremony and conveyed his deepest condolences over the tragic demise of Abe, lauding his contributions in strengthening the bilateral strategic partnership as well in conceptualising the vision of a free, open and inclusive Indo-Pacific region.
"I am feeling very sad about the sudden death of former premier Abe... He took Japan-India relations to a greater level and also expanded it in many areas," Modi, who shared a close friendship with the slain Japanese leader, said.
Modi recalled that when he visited Japan last time, he had a long conversation with Abe. "India is missing Shinzo Abe," he added.
"When I was in Tokyo earlier this year, little did I imagine I would be back for the solemn programme of former PM Abe's state funeral. He was a great leader, a phenomenal individual and someone who believed in India-Japan friendship. He shall live on in the hearts of millions!" Modi tweeted.
Abe, 67, was shot dead while making a campaign speech on July 8 in the southern Japanese city of Nara.
"I am confident that under your leadership, India-Japan relations will deepen further and achieve greater heights," Modi told Kishida.
Prime Minister Kishida appreciated Modi's visit to Japan to attend the State Funeral for former Prime Minister Abe.
Representatives from over 100 countries, including more than 20 heads of state and governments, attend Abe's funeral on Tuesday.
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'Made in India' must become symbol of excellence, global competitiveness: PM
New Delhi (PTI): Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Sunday called upon states to encourage manufacturing, boost 'ease of doing business' and strengthen the services sector to make India a global services giant.
Addressing the 5th National Conference of Chief Secretaries here, Modi emphasised the need for quality in governance, service delivery and manufacturing, and said the label 'Made in India' must become a symbol of excellence and global competitiveness.
He said India has the potential to become the world's food basket and the country must move towards high-value agriculture, horticulture, animal husbandry, dairying and fisheries to become a major food exporter.
"Called upon states to encourage manufacturing, boost 'Ease of Doing Business' and strengthen the services sector. Let us aim to make India a Global Services Giant," Modi said in a series of posts on X.
The theme of the three-day conference, which began on December 26, was 'Human Capital for Viksit Bharat'.
Modi observed that this conference marks another decisive step in strengthening the spirit of cooperative federalism and deepening Centre-State partnership to achieve the vision of a 'Viksit Bharat'.
Highlighting India's demographic advantage, he said nearly 70 per cent of the population is in the working-age group, creating a unique historical opportunity which, when combined with economic progress, can significantly accelerate the journey towards a 'Viksit Bharat', according to an official statement.
Modi said India has boarded the "Reform Express", driven primarily by the strength of its young population, and empowering this demographic remains the government's key priority.
He noted that the conference is being held at a time when the country is witnessing next-generation reforms and steadily moving towards becoming a major global economic power.
Underlining the need to strengthen 'atmanirbharta' (self-reliance), he said India must pursue self-reliance with zero defect in products and minimal environmental impact, making the label 'Made in India' synonymous with quality and strengthening the commitment to "zero effect, zero defect".
The PM urged the Centre and states to jointly identify 100 products for domestic manufacturing to reduce import dependence and strengthen economic resilience in line with the vision of 'Viksit Bharat'.
In higher education, too, he said, there is a need for academia and industry to work together to create high-quality talent.
He highlighted that India has a rich heritage and history with the potential to be among the top global tourist destinations.
Modi urged the states to prepare a roadmap for creating at least one global-level tourist destination and nourishing an entire tourist ecosystem.
He said it is important to align the national sports calendar with the global sports calendar.
"India is working to host the 2036 Olympics. India needs to prepare infrastructure and sports ecosystem at par with global standards," he said.
The prime minister said the next 10 years must be invested in the states, only then will India get the desired results in such sports events.
Every state must give this top priority and create infrastructure to attract global companies, he said.
In the services sector, Modi said, there should be greater emphasis on other areas like healthcare, education, transport, tourism, professional services and artificial intelligence, etc. to make India a global services giant.
He said India will soon be launching the National Manufacturing Mission (NMM).
States should work in tandem with the discussions and decisions emerging from the conferences of both chief secretaries and DGPs to strengthen governance and implementation.
The PM said similar conferences could be replicated at the departmental level to promote a national perspective among officers and improve governance outcomes in pursuit of a 'Viksit Bharat'.
In conclusion, he said every state must create a 10-year actionable plan based on the discussions of this conference with one, two, five and 10-year target timelines wherein technology can be utilised for regular monitoring.
The conference featured a series of special sessions that enabled focused deliberations on cross-cutting and emerging priorities.
It marks another important milestone in strengthening the Centre-State partnership through structured and sustained dialogue on national development priorities, according to the statement.
The PM's principal secretaries P K Mishra and Shaktikanta Das, Cabinet Secretary T V Somanathan, members of the NITI Aayog, chief secretaries of all states and Union territories, and domain experts attended the meeting.
Anchored in the prime minister's vision of cooperative federalism, this conference serves as the forum where the Centre and states collaborate, designing a unified roadmap to maximise India's human capital potential and accelerate inclusive, future-ready growth.
It has been organised annually over the past four years.
The first conference was held in Dharamshala in June 2022, followed by subsequent conferences in New Delhi in January 2023, December 2023 and December 2024.
