“India has become a model for many countries”: EAM Jaishankar at BRICS summit

External Affairs Minister S. Jaishankar reiterated India’s growing stature in the world and referred to the BRICS summit, stating, “There was a big conference going on there, there were 40-45 Presidents and Prime Ministers and they all felt, because these were mostly Presidents and Prime Ministers of developing countries, they felt that India has done it somewhere.” He recounted an incident at the summit where the South African President asked Prime Minister Narendra Modi to sit with him, saying, “come, you sit with me, at least if I touch you, then some of your light will fall on me also, that he felt that your achievement is an inspiration for us.”

“Today, India has become a model for many countries. India is not just a democracy that delivers but a democracy that is also an inspiration for the world,” Jaishankar emphasized.

Describing his visit to Tanzania, Jaishankar shared, “Last year I went to Tanzania and I was going from one city to another in Tanzania, there were villages in between. I saw it was like it happens here and people came out in such numbers, as if some political event was going on.” He added, “Because of the Jaljeevan Mission, Indian companies have strengthened themselves in water technology, we were able to take this water technology to Tanzania and there to the people of Tanzania. People in Tanzania thinks that if we got water it’s because of India.”

Regarding the Jal Jeevan Mission in Tanzania, the Indian embassy in Tanzania’s official website states, “The mission is based on a community approach to water and include extensive information, education, and communication as a key component.” The first phase of the program is operational and provides potable water to 2 million people in Dar-es-Salaam. The program has achieved a milestone of providing tap water connections to 13 crore rural households.

Jaishankar concluded, “The JJM is part of the Jal Shakti Ministry, which is the nodal ministry for the implementation of the scheme. The Government of India has extended Lines of Credit for water projects amounting to USD 1038.65 mn in Tanzania since 2012.”