Consulate General of India

Mr Yaz Mubarakai MLA, representing the Hon’ble Premier of WA,
Ms Zaneta Mascarenhas MP
Ms Trish Cook MP
Ms Parwinder Kaur MLC
Mr Rod Caddies MLC
Dr Jagadish Krishnan MLA
Mr Liam Staltari MLA
Lieutenant Col Jason M O’Keefe
Deputy Police Commissioner of Perth Allan Adams
Honourable Mayors and deputy mayors,
City Councillors,
Distinguished members of the DFAT and Consular Corps,
Members of the Indian community
And friends of India,

Kaya, namaste, sat sri akal, assalam alaikum, and a very good evening.

I would like to acknowledge the Traditional Custodians of the land the Whadjuk people of the Noongar nation and pay my respects to their Elders - past, present, and emerging.

Every year the people of India gather on this day in August to celebrate our hard-earned freedom from two centuries of colonial rule and to honour the countless sacrifices of every individual who fought for our independence. We also gather to reflect on what freedom means for us, and what it meant for the founding fathers and mothers of our nation. The following lines by Rabindranath Tagore from his collection of poems titled “Gitanjali or Song Offerings” perhaps best captures the vision of freedom:

Where the mind is without fear and the head is held high
Where knowledge is free
Where the world has not been broken up into fragments
By narrow domestic walls
Where words come out from the depths of truth
Where tireless striving stretches its arms towards perfection
Where the clear stream of reason has not lost its way
Into the dreary desert sand of dead habit
Where the mind is led forward by thee
Into ever-widening thought and action
Into that heaven of freedom, my Father, let my country awake. 

This timeless invocation drew inspiration from the traditions of ancient Indian philosophy and gave expression to ideas informing social and political reform movements of the day. And till this day the story of India’s democracy and economic development is centred around these principles of human dignity, knowledge, unity, truth, tireless pursuit of excellence, and innovation.

India today is a vibrant democracy of over 1.4 billion people, and the world’s fourth-largest economy, set to become the third largest by the end of this decade. Our growth is driven by innovation, resilience, and ambition.

We stand today in an increasingly turbulent world, surrounded by the multiple challenges of geopolitical rivalry, armed conflicts, climate change, technological advancements that are widening the development divide, and multipolar institutions that are increasingly unable to reflect the aspirations of its member states. These very challenges have created a new space for India to put forth its vision of a more inclusive world order through its advocacy of the interests of the Global South in international forums like the G20, BRICS, G7, and Quad as well as through its bilateral engagements, its development assistance programs to regional partners that are non-reciprocal and community-driven, and through its stress on human-centric, inclusive initiatives for cooperation and global governance.

Further, in the aftermath of the Covid 19 pandemic and subsequent geopolitical tensions, all countries have realised the need to create greater resilience through shortening and multiple alternatives to supply chains, as well as by building sovereign capacity in critical sectors. Comprehensive Strategic partnerships such as the one between India and Australia include fostering of close economic relations based on the complementarities of different economies as key to proofing their interests by providing new opportunities and alternatives that benefit both partners.

In its ambition to emerge as a developed economy and credible global partner, India has invested in its manufacturing sector through production capacity expansion, government policy support, heightened merger and acquisition activity, and private equity and Venture capital-led investment. India's domestic investment announcements surged to 428.04 billion USD in FY23-24, and India's manufacturing sector is poised to reach 1 trillion USD by FY26-27. These developments are creating a robust pipeline for the country’s sustained economic growth in the years to come.

The India that you see today is one of 1.4 billion aspirations backed by the rapidly evolving public policies seeking the best mechanisms and partnerships to realise those dreams. Our youth and startups are part of this drive, making India the third-largest startup ecosystem in the world. As of July 2025, India had over 180,683, startups with 118 unicorns.

In technology, India stands tall as a digital powerhouse. India’s digital payments ecosystem has witnessed explosive growth, with UPI (Unified Payments Interface) leading the way. In July 2025, UPI transactions hit a new record with 19.47 billion transactions, totalling close to 3 billion USD. UPI alone processes over 16 billion transactions per month. That’s about 37 million transactions per minute. India's AI market is anticipated to reach 17 billion USD by 2027. AI is expected to contribute between 450– 500 billion USD to India's GDP this year, accounting for approximately 10% of the country's goal to achieve a 5 trillionUSD economy. New vistas of cooperation in this sector are opening up between India and WA with the integration of AI into sectors such as healthcare, agriculture, finance, and education.

In the realm of space technology, this year, saw Group Captain Shubhanshu Shukla become the first Indian to live and work aboard the International Space Station (ISS), and ISRO successfully executing an in-orbit docking of twin satellites under the SpaDeX mission, positioning India as the fourth country worldwide capable of this sophisticated space manoeuvre. This follows close on the heels of successful space missions like Chandrayaan-3 and Gaganyaan. Western Australia will play a vital strategic role in providing support to India's Gaganyaan mission by providing ground tracking facilities located in its Cocos (Keeling) Islands territory. This will help ISRO maintain continuous communication with the spacecraft during critical mission phases.

The Indian government has been investing heavily in the infrastructure sector to provide impetus to economic growth. The Sagarmala Project aims to transform the country’s ports and coastal infrastructure to boost maritime trade, enhance port connectivity, and promote coastal economic development. As of 2025, over 150 projects have been identified with an investment of about 100 billion USD.

Under the Prime Minister’s Gati Shakti mission, over 100 major infrastructure projects are ongoing, worth approximately 75 billion USD including investments in roads, railways, and urban development. India completed the world's highest single-arch railway bridge in Kashmir, a historic feat of engineering and national connectivity. Spanning the Chenab River, this iconic bridge stands at an awe-inspiring 359 meters (1,178 feet) above the riverbed, making it 35 meters taller than the Eiffel Tower.

With one of the world’s largest rail networks, Indian Railways is focusing on electrification, high-speed corridors, and the development of semi-high-speed trains like the Vande Bharat Express, all designed and built indigenously. The railways’ ambitious plan includes electrifying 100% of its broad-gauge routes by 2030 and manufacturing over 700 modern trains domestically each year, supporting India’s goal to become a global manufacturing hub.

Under initiatives like the Bharatmala Pariyojana, the government aims to develop around 83,000 kilometres of new highways by 2027.

Our ties with Australia and particularly with Western Australia have never been stronger. India and Western Australia share values of democracy, diversity, and openness. With rapidly growing trade and people-to-people connections, we are well-positioned to collaborate in areas like clean energy transition, advanced manufacturing and AI, defence and military exercises, education and skills development, the creative industries, cutting edge technology and innovation in space and defence, and cultural exchange and tourism. Two significant achievements in the field of education have been the University of Western Australia receiving recognition from India’s University Grants Commission to establish campuses in Mumbai and Chennai, and the Western Australian Certificate of Education (WACE) receiving formal equivalence in India for both Class X and Class XII qualifications with two schools in Karnataka already offering Western Australian curriculum.

Today is the first match in a series of 4 matches between the visiting India’s men’s hockey team and Australia’s Kookaburras. May the best men win! We look forward to welcoming the Indian men’s cricket team for the opening match of the India-Australia Bilateral ODI Series in Perth. And may I mention Avidsys Group & Mr Ansh Gautam, the proud owner of Chennai Bulls for creating history by winning the first-ever championship of the GMR Rugby Premier League which was hosted in India in June 2025.

The Indian diaspora in Western Australia represents all that is best of India; diverse, skilled, industrious, aspirational, and deeply involved in the communities that they have settled in, achieving excellence in the fields of science, education, business, and politics. I would like to thank the Indian Society of Western Australia (ISWA), Federation of Indian Associations of western Australia (FIAWA) and all their member organisations, for their outstanding commitment to community service.

I would also like to take the opportunity to congratulate all of you as well as make a few special mentions. It is my honour to congratulate:

Professor Sharath Sriram on his appointment as the Chief Scientist of Western Australia;

Mr. Custodio Vincent Lodo for receiving The King’s Birthday 2025 honour for his outstanding service to the community;

Dr. Rajeshwary Krishnan for being awarded the AMA President’s Award in recognition of her dedicated work with First Nations families;

Dr. Renu Sharma for being inducted into the 2025 WA Women’s Hall of Fame in the STEM + Technical Trades category;

Mrs Sindhu Nair for winning WA's Multi Cultural Artist of the Year award for 2025;

Within you burns the spirit of the ancient Indian worldview of Vasudhaiva kutumbakam of the world being one family.

As we commemorate 79 years of India's independence, let us reflect not only on how far we have come, but also on how much we can achieve together. On behalf of the Consulate General of India in Perth, I thank you all for your continued support and friendship.

Jai Hind!

Thank you!