On a day Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi laid the foundation stone for the new BJP headquarters in New Delhi, his speech eulogising the party sparked off a political row. Sharing dais with several senior leaders, including party&rsquo;s founding members LK Advani and MM Joshi, Modi said the BJP faced more adversity after India&rsquo;s freedom than Congress would have even under British rule.&nbsp; 
 
The comments drew an angry response from the Congress which said the Prime Minister should apologise to the nation for &ldquo;denigrating&rdquo; the freedom struggle. &nbsp; 
 
Modi said the BJP has made more sacrifices than any other political party and described the new office, which is to be ready on former prime minister Atal Bihari Vajpayee&rsquo;s birthday on December 25, 2018, as not just a structure but a&nbsp;symbol of sacrifices of party leaders.&nbsp; 
 
Meanwhile, the BJP has bought land for its offices in 250 organisational districts across the country, party president Amit Shah announced at the ceremony. 
 
&ldquo;The BJP will be the only party which has faced hurdles from when it was born, with each effort scrutinised and judged negatively,&rdquo; Modi said addressing party leaders and workers who had gathered at the site for the BJP&rsquo;s new headquarters. The 70-room state-of-the-art eco-friendly building is expected to be ready before the Lok Sabha elections in 2019. &nbsp; 
 
&ldquo;The BJP&rsquo;s dedicated workers have faced more hardship in the past 60 years than the Congress would have even under British rule,&rdquo; Modi said.&nbsp; 
 
He made a veiled attack at the Congress saying BJP was a party which was devoid of dynasty politics. &quot;We should project the party as an example in the world of a party which is democratic, free of dynasty politics and ideological,&quot; he said.&nbsp; 
 
Within hours, the Congress retaliated saying Modi had &ldquo;belittled&rdquo; the sacrifices of freedom fighters as the RSS had not played any role in the struggle for independence.&nbsp; 
 
&ldquo;The Prime Minister has humiliated and denigrated the entire freedom struggle of India. Coming from the Prime Minister, this is unacceptable. We will not tolerate it,&rdquo;said Congress&rsquo;s chief spokesperson Randeep Surjewala.&nbsp; 
 
&ldquo;Neither BJP nor RSS participated in the freedom struggle. They actually supported the British,&rdquo;he said.&nbsp; 
 
Modi had also taken on the Trinamool Congress recalling the &ldquo;difficulties&rdquo; faced by the party in the run-up to the assembly elections in West Bengal. He said if a BJP candidate tried to open an office in the state, his life would become difficult.&nbsp; 
 
Recalling that there was a time when BJP would find it difficult to find space for an office, he said that candidates of no other party would have forfeited more deposits than those of BJP as they &ldquo;fought for ideology, not just results&rdquo;. 
 
Modi said that even if the BJP had to remain in opposition, it would not give up its ideology. 
 
(DNA)

The comments drew an angry response from the Congress which said Modi should apologise to the nation for 'denigrating' the freedom struggle

On a day Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi laid the foundation stone for the new BJP headquarters in New Delhi, his speech eulogising the party sparked off a political row. Sharing dais with several senior leaders, including party’s founding members LK Advani and MM Joshi, Modi said the BJP faced more adversity after India’s freedom than Congress would have even under British rule. The comments drew an angry response from the Congress which said the Prime Minister should apologise to the nation for “denigrating” the freedom struggle. Modi said the BJP has made more sacrifices than any other political party and described the new office, which is to be ready on former prime minister Atal Bihari Vajpayee’s birthday on December 25, 2018, as not just a structure but a symbol of sacrifices of party leaders. Meanwhile, the BJP has bought land for its offices in 250 organisational districts across the country, party president Amit Shah announced at the ceremony. “The BJP will be the only party which has faced hurdles from when it was born, with each effort scrutinised and judged negatively,” Modi said addressing party leaders and workers who had gathered at the site for the BJP’s new headquarters. The 70-room state-of-the-art eco-friendly building is expected to be ready before the Lok Sabha elections in 2019. “The BJP’s dedicated workers have faced more hardship in the past 60 years than the Congress would have even under British rule,” Modi said. He made a veiled attack at the Congress saying BJP was a party which was devoid of dynasty politics. "We should project the party as an example in the world of a party which is democratic, free of dynasty politics and ideological," he said. Within hours, the Congress retaliated saying Modi had “belittled” the sacrifices of freedom fighters as the RSS had not played any role in the struggle for independence. “The Prime Minister has humiliated and denigrated the entire freedom struggle of India. Coming from the Prime Minister, this is unacceptable. We will not tolerate it,”said Congress’s chief spokesperson Randeep Surjewala. “Neither BJP nor RSS participated in the freedom struggle. They actually supported the British,”he said. Modi had also taken on the Trinamool Congress recalling the “difficulties” faced by the party in the run-up to the assembly elections in West Bengal. He said if a BJP candidate tried to open an office in the state, his life would become difficult. Recalling that there was a time when BJP would find it difficult to find space for an office, he said that candidates of no other party would have forfeited more deposits than those of BJP as they “fought for ideology, not just results”. Modi said that even if the BJP had to remain in opposition, it would not give up its ideology. (DNA)

Indian Prime Minister says his party made more sacrifices than opposition since freedom

The World Bank said today&nbsp;it will lend&nbsp;India&nbsp;more than $1 billion for its huge solar energy programme, after Prime Minister Narendra Modi sought climate change funds from its visiting head.

Modi is banking on&nbsp;India&#39;s 300 days a year of sunshine to generate power and help fight climate change rather than committing to emission cuts like China.

The World Bank loan is the global lender&#39;s biggest solar aid for any country and comes as&nbsp;India has set a goal of raising its solar capacity nearly 30 times to 100 gigawatts by 2020 and is attracting mega investment proposals from top companies and institutions.

&quot;Prime Minister Modi&#39;s personal commitment toward renewable energy, particularly solar, is the driving force behind these investments,&quot; World Bank President Jim Yong Kim said in a statement released after he met Modi. &quot;The World Bank Group will do all it can to help&nbsp;India meet its ambitious targets, especially around scaling up solar energy.&quot;

India&nbsp;is the largest client of the World Bank, which lent it about $4.8 billion between 2015 and 2016.

Modi&#39;s office said he told Kim about the need for climate change financing for countries like India&nbsp;that are &quot;consciously choosing to follow an environmentally sustainable path&quot;.

India&nbsp;wants the share of non-fossil fuel in total installed power capacity to jump to 40 per cent by 2030 from 30 per cent currently, but there are challenges including weak finances of state distribution companies forced to sell subsidised power, difficulties hooking up solar projects to grids, and access to affordable capital.

Still&nbsp;India&nbsp;reckons its renewable energy industry could generate business opportunities worth $160 billion this decade, making it a lucrative market that has already attracted big global players such as Japan&#39;s Softbank Corp, Taiwan&#39;s Foxconn, First Solar, Trina Solar Ltd and Finland&#39;s state-controlled utility Fortum Oyj.

German development bank KFW has already agreed to offer&nbsp;India&nbsp;low-interest loans of around Euro 1 billion over the next five years to fund roof-mounted solar panels, and the construction of solar energy farms and self-contained solar power facilities not connected to the grid. 
 
(Reuters)

Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi is banking on?the country's 300 days a year of sunshine to generate power and help fight climate change

The World Bank said today it will lend India more than $1 billion for its huge solar energy programme, after Prime Minister Narendra Modi sought climate change funds from its visiting head. Modi is banking on India's 300 days a year of sunshine to generate power and help fight climate change rather than committing to emission cuts like China. The World Bank loan is the global lender's biggest solar aid for any country and comes as India has set a goal of raising its solar capacity nearly 30 times to 100 gigawatts by 2020 and is attracting mega investment proposals from top companies and institutions. "Prime Minister Modi's personal commitment toward renewable energy, particularly solar, is the driving force behind these investments," World Bank President Jim Yong Kim said in a statement released after he met Modi. "The World Bank Group will do all it can to help India meet its ambitious targets, especially around scaling up solar energy." India is the largest client of the World Bank, which lent it about $4.8 billion between 2015 and 2016. Modi's office said he told Kim about the need for climate change financing for countries like India that are "consciously choosing to follow an environmentally sustainable path". India wants the share of non-fossil fuel in total installed power capacity to jump to 40 per cent by 2030 from 30 per cent currently, but there are challenges including weak finances of state distribution companies forced to sell subsidised power, difficulties hooking up solar projects to grids, and access to affordable capital. Still India reckons its renewable energy industry could generate business opportunities worth $160 billion this decade, making it a lucrative market that has already attracted big global players such as Japan's Softbank Corp, Taiwan's Foxconn, First Solar, Trina Solar Ltd and Finland's state-controlled utility Fortum Oyj. German development bank KFW has already agreed to offer India low-interest loans of around Euro 1 billion over the next five years to fund roof-mounted solar panels, and the construction of solar energy farms and self-contained solar power facilities not connected to the grid. (Reuters)

India to get over $1 billion from World Bank for solar energy programme

The World Bank said today&nbsp;it would lend&nbsp;India&nbsp;more than $1 billion for its huge solar energy programme, after Prime Minister Narendra Modi sought climate change funds from its visiting head.

Modi is banking on&nbsp;India&#39;s 300 days a year of sunshine to generate power and help fight climate change rather than committing to emission cuts like China.

The World Bank loan is the global lender&#39;s biggest solar aid for any country and comes as&nbsp;India has set a goal of raising its solar capacity nearly 30 times to 100 gigawatts by 2020 and is attracting mega investment proposals from top companies and institutions.

&quot;Prime Minister Modi&#39;s personal commitment toward renewable energy, particularly solar, is the driving force behind these investments,&quot; World Bank President Jim Yong Kim said in a statement released after he met Modi. &quot;The World Bank Group will do all it can to help&nbsp;Indiameet its ambitious targets, especially around scaling up solar energy.&quot;

India&nbsp;is the largest client of the World Bank, which lent it around $4.8 billion between 2015 and 2016.

Modi&#39;s office said he told Kim about the need for climate change financing for countries likeIndia&nbsp;that are &quot;consciously choosing to follow an environmentally sustainable path&quot;.

India&nbsp;wants the share of non-fossil fuel in total installed power capacity to jump to 40 per cent by 2030 from 30 per cent currently, but there are challenges including weak finances of state distribution companies forced to sell subsidised power, difficulties hooking up solar projects to grids, and access to affordable capital.

Still&nbsp;India&nbsp;reckons its renewable energy industry could generate business opportunities worth $160 billion this decade, making it a lucrative market that has already attracted big global players such as Japan&#39;s Softbank Corp, Taiwan&#39;s Foxconn, First Solar, Trina Solar Ltd and Finland&#39;s state-controlled utility Fortum Oyj.

German development bank KFW has already agreed to offer&nbsp;India&nbsp;low-interest loans of around 1 billion euro over the next five years to fund roof-mounted solar panels, and the construction of solar energy farms and self-contained solar power facilities not connected to the grid. 
 
(Reuters)

Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi is banking on?India's 300 days a year of sunshine to generate power and help fight climate change

The World Bank said today it would lend India more than $1 billion for its huge solar energy programme, after Prime Minister Narendra Modi sought climate change funds from its visiting head. Modi is banking on India's 300 days a year of sunshine to generate power and help fight climate change rather than committing to emission cuts like China. The World Bank loan is the global lender's biggest solar aid for any country and comes as India has set a goal of raising its solar capacity nearly 30 times to 100 gigawatts by 2020 and is attracting mega investment proposals from top companies and institutions. "Prime Minister Modi's personal commitment toward renewable energy, particularly solar, is the driving force behind these investments," World Bank President Jim Yong Kim said in a statement released after he met Modi. "The World Bank Group will do all it can to help Indiameet its ambitious targets, especially around scaling up solar energy." India is the largest client of the World Bank, which lent it around $4.8 billion between 2015 and 2016. Modi's office said he told Kim about the need for climate change financing for countries likeIndia that are "consciously choosing to follow an environmentally sustainable path". India wants the share of non-fossil fuel in total installed power capacity to jump to 40 per cent by 2030 from 30 per cent currently, but there are challenges including weak finances of state distribution companies forced to sell subsidised power, difficulties hooking up solar projects to grids, and access to affordable capital. Still India reckons its renewable energy industry could generate business opportunities worth $160 billion this decade, making it a lucrative market that has already attracted big global players such as Japan's Softbank Corp, Taiwan's Foxconn, First Solar, Trina Solar Ltd and Finland's state-controlled utility Fortum Oyj. German development bank KFW has already agreed to offer India low-interest loans of around 1 billion euro over the next five years to fund roof-mounted solar panels, and the construction of solar energy farms and self-contained solar power facilities not connected to the grid. (Reuters)

India to get over $1 billion from World Bank for Modi's solar energy programme