New Delhi [India], August 15 (ANI): Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Friday lauded the soldiers of Operation Sindoor for their swift response to the Pahalgam massacre, asserting that India will no longer abide nuclear threats or tolerate the 'blackmail' of terrorism.

PM Modi, while addressing the nation from the ramparts of the Red Fort on the 79th Independence Day, paid tribute to the armed forces involved in Operation Sindoor and highlighted India's path towards self-reliance in defence and national security.

He began by expressing pride in saluting the warriors of Operation Sindoor, recalling how terrorists crossed the Indian border on April 22 and committed a brutal massacre in Pahalgam, killing people after asking about their religion and executing families.

He said, 'I see a special significance in today's 15th August. I feel great pride that today I have the opportunity to salute the brave warriors of Operation Sindoor from the ramparts of the Red Fort. Our courageous soldiers punished the enemies beyond anything they could have imagined. On 22nd April, terrorists crossed the border and committed a massacre in Pahalgam. Killing people after asking their religion, shooting husbands in front of their wives, and executing fathers in front of their children. The entire nation was filled with outrage, and the whole world was shocked by such a massacre.'

The Prime Minister said that Operation Sindoor was an 'operation of outrage' and was a direct response to the attack, asserting that the army was given complete autonomy to strategise and execute the mission.

'Operation Sindoor was the expression of that outrage. After the events of the 22nd, we gave our army complete freedom--let them decide the strategy, choose the targets, and select the timing. And our army accomplished something that had not happened in decades. Penetrating hundreds of kilometres into enemy territory, they reduced terrorist headquarters to dust and turned terrorist headquarters into ruins. Pakistan is still sleepless. The devastation in Pakistan has been so huge that every day brings new revelations and fresh information,' PM Modi said.

He warned that nuclear threats will no longer be tolerated, and stated that India has endured terrorism for decades and declared a 'new normal.'

He said, 'Our nation has endured terrorism for many decades. The heart of the country has been pierced time and again. Now, we have established a new normal: those who nurture and harbour terrorism, and those who empower terrorists, will no longer be seen as separate. They are all equal enemies of humanity, with no distinction between them. Bharat has now decided that we will no longer tolerate these nuclear threats. The nuclear blackmail that has gone on for so long will no longer be endured. If our enemies continue this attempt in the future, our army will decide on its own terms, at the time of its choosing, in the manner it deems fit, and target the objectives it selects and we will act accordingly. We will give a fitting and crushing response.'

The PM also addressed the Indus Waters Treaty, calling it unjust and one-sided, pointing out that rivers originating in India irrigate enemy fields while Indian farmers remain thirsty.

'Bharat has now decided--blood and water will not flow together. The people of the country now fully understand how unjust and one-sided the Indus Waters Treaty has been. The waters of rivers originating from Bharat are irrigating the fields of our enemies, while the farmers and the soil of our nation remain thirsty. This was an agreement that has caused unimaginable loss to our farmers for the past seven decades. Now, the water that rightfully belongs to Bharat will be reserved solely for Bharat, solely for the farmers of Bharat. The form of the Indus Agreement that Bharat has endured for decades will not be tolerated any longer. This agreement is unacceptable to us in the interest of our farmers, and in the interest of the nation.' PM Modi said.

PM Modi paid tribute to the freedom fighters, saying they sacrificed their lives, youth, and endured imprisonment for the sake of India's honour, freedom, and dignity, not for personal gain, but for the liberation of millions from slavery.

'Countless people sacrificed their lives for freedom, they dedicated their entire youth, spent their lives in prisons, and embraced the gallows, not for personal gains but for the honour of Maa Bharati, for the freedom of crores of people, to break the chains of slavery, and with one emotion in their hearts--Dignity,' Modi stated.

He also highlighted the impact of slavery and he credited India's farmers with making the country self-reliant in foodgrain production after independence, overcoming the challenge of feeding millions. Modi emphasised that self-reliance is a key measure of a nation's 'self-respect.'

PM Modi, 'Slavery made us impoverished, and it also rendered us dependent. Our reliance upon others kept increasing. We all know that after independence, feeding crores of people was a formidable challenge. And it was none other than the farmers of my country who, by toiling hard, filled the granaries of the nation. They made the country self-reliant in foodgrain production. For a nation, the greatest measure of self-respect even today is its self-reliance.'

He cautioned against habitual dependency, stressing the need for constant vigilance to maintain self-reliance and avoid its erosion.

'The bedrock of a Viksit Bharat is also a self-reliant Bharat. The greater a nation's reliance on others, the more its freedom comes into question. Misfortune arises when dependency becomes a habit, and we fail to realise when we abandon self-reliance and become dependent on others. This habit is fraught with danger, and hence one must remain vigilant every moment to be self-reliant,' PM Modi said.

He emphasised that diminishing self-reliance erodes capability, stressing the importance of preserving and enhancing self-reliance to maintain and boost national capability.

PM Modi stated, 'Self-reliance is not confined merely to imports and exports, or to rupees, pounds, and dollars. Its meaning is not so limited. Self-reliance is linked to our capability, and when self-reliance begins to diminish, capability too continually declines. Therefore, to preserve, maintain, and enhance our capability, it is imperative to be self-reliant.'

He also said that Pakistan had 'no inkling' of what India possessed in its artillery and attributed the operation's success to the strength of indigenous capabilities, allowing the armed forces to act without hesitation or interruption.

PM Modi said, 'We witnessed in Operation Sindoor the marvel of 'Made in India'. The enemy had no inkling of what weapons and capabilities we possessed, what power was destroying them in the blink of an eye. Imagine if we were not self-reliant, could we have executed Operation Sindoor with such swiftness? We would have been plagued by worries over who might supply us, whether or not we would get the required equipment, and so on. But because we held the strength of 'Made in India' in our hands, in the hands of our armed forces, they carried out their valour without concern, without interruption, and without hesitation. The results we see today are the outcome of our consistent mission over the past ten years towards self-reliance in the field of defence.' (ANI)