In his first Mann ki Baat address of the new year, Prime Minister Narendra Modi spotlighted India’s startup momentum, saying the country has become the third-largest startup ecosystem in the world, powered by ideas he described as “out of the box”.
The Prime Minister used the broadcast to underline what he sees as the next step: pairing entrepreneurship with a stronger quality culture in Indian manufacturing. Greeting the nation on National Voters’ Day and ahead of Republic Day, he urged Indian industry to raise standards and make excellence the benchmark .
“Unimaginable even 10 years ago”
Modi credited young entrepreneurs for building a startup journey “nearly a decade” in the making and said the range of work underway today would have been hard to imagine 10 years ago.
He listed sectors where startups are increasingly active, including artificial intelligence, space, nuclear energy, semiconductors, mobility, green hydrogen, and biotechnology and added that “you’ll find one Indian start up or the other working” across these domains . The remarks were part of his 130th Mann ki Baat address .
Quality as the bridge between innovation and trust
Alongside the celebration of startups, the Prime Minister pressed for a sharper focus on product quality across categories. “Let us resolve to improve the quality of whatever we manufacture,” he said, naming areas such as textiles, technology, electronics and packaging, and adding that an Indian product should be synonymous with “top quality”.
The message, delivered at a moment when the Prime Minister framed India’s startup story as expanding into frontier sectors, also served as a reminder that scale and novelty are only part of the equation, reliability and consistency in what India makes, and how it is perceived globally, remain central to the next phase of growth.
Where the Mann Ki Baat address was heard?
The address was heard by BJP national president Nitin Nabin and Uttar Pradesh Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath at the Shri Vrindavan Chandrodaya temple on Vrindavan Marg.
Nabin, who was in Mathura, said the Prime Minister has taken the country forward while “keeping the last person at the centre of governance,” and remarked that roads in Uttar Pradesh looked “better than those seen abroad”. He also referenced Pandit Deendayal Upadhyaya’s concept of Antyodaya, saying the Prime Minister’s development vision is focused on “the poorest and the most marginalised”.
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