Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Saturday, while addressing the nation from the ramparts of the Red Fort during Independence Day celebrations, said India had opened up 99% of its coastline for exploration after years of treating the area as a “no-go zone”, calling the earlier approach a “poverty of thought” and linking it to the country’s continued dependence on crude oil.
Addressing the nation from the ramparts of the Red Fort on Independence Day, PM Modi said changing the approach towards India’s maritime resources was crucial for strengthening the country’s energy security and reducing dependence on imports.
“Today, the country has to remain dependent on crude oil; this is due to our flawed thinking. You will be surprised to know that we have
declared 99% of our coastline as a ‘No Go area’. We ourselves had decided not to go into the ocean for exploration. This was poverty of thought. Sectors that were once seen as ‘No-Go Areas’ are now ‘Go-Ahead Areas,’” he said.
PM Modi said India was now actively pursuing deep-sea exploration and searching for new reserves as part of its broader effort to strengthen energy security.
The Prime Minister said the government had taken steps to accelerate exploration and develop India’s domestic energy capabilities.
“We are now actively engaged in deep-sea exploration and the search for new reserves. Last year, we announced the ‘Samudra Manthan’ initiative as a significant step in this direction, and recently, we decided to accelerate the work by allocating ₹85,000 crore for this purpose,” PM Modi said.
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Emphasising the importance of energy independence, he said, “Energy Security is the demand of our time. Therefore, we have already taken one strong step after another in that direction.”
‘Becoming ‘Atmanirbhar Bharat’ Is Crucial’: PM
PM Modi also linked the push for domestic exploration to his broader vision of an ‘Atmanirbhar Bharat’, saying India could not afford to remain dependent on other countries for critical resources.
“Becoming an ‘Atmanirbhar Bharat’ is crucial. That is why, over the past few years, our conviction has been that India should no longer live in dependence on other nations; we must become self-reliant. We must enhance our own capacities and safeguard our interests ourselves. With this resolve, we are moving forward firmly towards an ‘Atmanirbhar Bharat.’ Every Indian is connecting with initiatives like ‘Make in India,’ ‘Swadeshi’, and ‘Local for Local’,” he said.
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Calling for a shift in the way India approaches its natural resources, PM Modi said a country’s progress could be restricted not just by limited resources but also by the way it views them.
“A nation is rarely held back by a lack of resources; rather, it is often constrained by the limitations of its mindset. When thinking stagnates and becomes confined by boundaries, we fail to recognise our own true potential,” he said.
