Prime Minister Narendra Modi today asked citizens of the country to take a pledge to combat poverty together along with the help of other SAARC nations.
"When we fought the Independence struggle, we had no weapons, but we fought together and defeated a foreign power. My fellow citizens, let us take a pledge today to fight against poverty, to defeat poverty in a similar manner," said Modi during his first Independence Day speech.
"We fought off such a strong foreign power; can we not defeat poverty then? Let's pledge to work with our neighbours to defeat this phenomenon in the region. By working together, we SAARC nations can change the world's outlook towards us," he added.
Earlier, the Prime Minister unfurled the national flag from the ramparts of the Red Fort after inspecting a guard of honour.
He also paid homage at Mahatma Gandhi's memorial Rajghat before arriving at the Red Fort.
