Have Clear Road Map To Channelise Indians' Potential: Modi

NEW DELHI: Prime Minister Narendra Modi has said he had a clear road map to channelise the immense capability of Indians, and refused to be drawn into comparisons with China even as he stressed there was need to have faith that the neighbouring country would accept global laws.

In an exclusive interview to CNN's Fareed Zakaria, telecast in its entirety Sunday, Modi said India had a chance to rise to its glory of the past. He said the present era belonged to Asia, laid stress on education of girl child, on winning trust of people through his actions and revealed he derived pleasure from his work.

Modi, in his first interview since becoming prime minister in May this year, also spoke of the benefits of yoga in integrating mind and body.

In the interview, parts of which were released Friday, Modi, who spoke in Hindi, said the Indian Muslims will live and die for India and the Al Qaeda is "delusional" if it thinks Indian Muslims will dance to its tunes.

The prime minister, who is scheduled to travel to the US later this week, also said that it was possible for the two countries to develop a genuine strategic alliance.

Asked if India will be the next China and grow consistently at 8-9 percent, he said that India does not need to become anything else but remain itself.

"India must become only India. This is a country that once upon a time was called 'the golden bird'. We have fallen from where we were before. But now we have the chance to rise again," he said.

He said India and China have grown at similar paces over the last several centuries and were both growing rapidly together.
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