PM has come like a 'breath of fresh air': Vardhan

Union Science and Technology Minister Harsh Vardhan Tuesday showered praise on Prime Minister Narendra Modi, saying he has come "like a breath of fresh air" and has ensured that the outcome of science reaches to the countrymen.

He said with the inspiration from the "most revered prime minister", India has joined the prestigious club of nations which have operated a full-fledged flight on alternative energy source like biojetfuel.

He was referring to an event where a private airlines recently had operated an aircraft using biofuel.

While developed countries like the US, Canada and Australia have already conducted these test flights, India has been the first developing nation to operate a flight on biofuel, he said.

"In a country like India which has millions of poor and malnourished, which has been dogged by poverty and where basic sanitation and hygiene were an issue even after decades of independence, Modi ji came like a breath of fresh air and ensured that the outcome of science reaches to the people of India," Vardhan said in his valedictory address at the DST-CII India Italy Technology Summit.

Modi and Italian Prime Minister Giuseppe Conte were also present at the event.

Modern science and technology have changed civilisations and the way people live and work, Vardhan said.

"But in India it is indeed a fact that this is the first time in our history that a prime minister has leveraged science and technology this intensively to bridge the social disparities, provide technological solutions with focus on affordability for the poor ... coupled with economic growth and employment generation," he said.

Modi, Vardhan said, has taken unprecedented political initiative to make science and technology more relevant for the society.

In the past, Vardhan had said Modi and Vajpayee shared the same DNA in their commitment towards the nation.