Issue No 123              INDIAChronicle

February. 2016                                  A Monthly E-Newsletter from the high commission of india in australia

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INSIDE THIS ISSUE                                MAIN

 MAIN                                          Address by the President of India on the
 ECONOMY                                       eve of the Republic Day of India 2016
 TRADE AND INVESTMENT
 NEWSMAKERS / NRI                              PIB, New Delhi, January 25, 2016
 INFOTECH
 FEATURE
 TOURISM
 CALENDAR

HIGHLIGHTS

                      PM’s interaction through
                      PRAGATI
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TechnologyVision 2035 –
Putting Science to Use
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Himachal Pradesh:                               The President, Shri Pranab Mukherjee, the Vice President, Shri M. Hamid Ansari, the Prime Minister, Shri Narendra Modi and the Chief
Jewelled Inspirations of the                    Guest of Republic Day, President of France, Mr. Francois Hollande at the saluting dais, at Rajpath, on the occasion of the 67th Republic
Buddha                                          Day Parade 2016, in New Delhi on January 26, 2016. The Union Minister for Defence, Shri Manohar Parrikar and the Minister of State
MORE [+]                                        for Planning (Independent Charge) and Defence, Shri Rao Inderjit Singh are also seen.

                                                On the eve of the sixty-seventh Republic Day of our          of growth. India’s economy also had to face the blowback.
                                                nation, I extend my warm greetings to all of you in India    Weak investor sentiments led to withdrawal of funds from
                                                and abroad. I convey my special greetings to members         emerging markets including India putting pressure on the
                                                of our Armed Forces, Para-military Forces and Internal       Indian rupee. Our exports suffered. Our manufacturing
                                                Security Forces. I pay my tribute to the brave soldiers who  sector is yet to recover fully.
                                                made the supreme sacrifice of their lives in defending
                                                India’s territorial integrity and in upholding the rule      In 2015, we were also denied the bounty of nature. While
                                                of law.                                                      large parts of India were affected by severe drought, other
                                                                                                             areas reeled under devastating floods. Unusual weather
                                                On twenty-sixth January 1950, our Republic was born.         conditions impacted our agricultural production. Rural
                                                On this day, we gave ourselves the Constitution of India.    employment and income levels suffered.
                                                This day saw the culmination of heroic struggle of an
                                                extraordinary generation of leaders who overcame             We can call out these challenges because we are aware
                                                colonialism to establish the world’s largest democracy.      of them. There is a great virtue in acknowledging a
                                                They pulled together India’s amazing diversity to build      problem and resolving to address it. India is building and
                                                national unity, which has brought us so far. The enduring    implementing strategies to solve these problems. This
                                                democratic institutions they established have given us       year, with an estimated growth rate of 7.3 percent, India
                                                the gift of continuity on the path of progress. India is a   is poised to become the fastest growing large economy.
                                                rising power, a country fast emerging as a global leader in  Contraction in global oil prices has helped maintain
                                                science, technology, innovation and start-ups, and whose     external sector stability and control domestic prices.
                                                economic success is the envy of the world.                   Despite occasional setbacks, industrial performance this
                                                                                                             year has been strong.
                                                The year 2015 has been a year of challenges. During
                                                this year, the global economy remained subdued.              Aadhaar, with its present reach of 96 crore people, is
                                                Unpredictability ruled the commodity markets.                helping in direct transfer of benefits, plugging leakages
                                                Uncertainty marked the institutional responses. In such      and improving transparency. Over 19 crore bank accounts
                                                troubled environment, no one nation could be an oasis        opened under the Pradhan Mantri Jan Dhan Yojana is the

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