Narendra Modi: belief

Transcript context

…I was wondering if you could speak to the incredible logistics, that blew my mind, of running the elections in India. So there’s a lot of interesting anecdotes that arise, for example, that no voter should be more than two kilometers away from a polling station. The result of that is you have these stories, of voting machines having to be carried to remote regions of India, is really incredible. Just every single voter counts, and the machinery of having 600 plus million people vote. Is there some anecdote you could speak to that is particularly impressive to you? Or maybe you could speak generally to the logistics of what it makes to run an election that big, a democracy that big. First and foremost, I am truly grateful for your insightful question. Anyone who believes in democracy should listen to what I’m about to share with you. We often discuss election results, but all the behind the scenes work is overlooked. Let’s take the recently concluded 2024 general elections as an example. There were 980 million registered voters. Each of those voters had a registered ID, and all the necessary details in a vast database. And this number is twice the entire population of North America. It even surpasses the total population of the entire European Union. Out of the 980 million registered voters, 646 million people ventured out, and braved the intense heat of May, determined to cast their votes. Temperatures soared to 40 degrees in some areas, yet they chose to go, and the size of this voter base is double the population of the United States. We had more than a million polling booths. Can you fathom all the manpower involved in this? My country has more than 2,500 registered political parties. This staggering figure, with such a vast array of political parties, has the power to leave the entire world in awe. My country has more than 900 round-the-clock news channels. There are over 5,000 newspapers published daily. They each play a role in upholding democracy in their own way. Even the humblest villagers here embrace technology with remarkable swiftness. While some other countries take months to declare election results, we announced the results within a day, despite the mind-boggling number of voters. And you were spot on in saying that even the remotest villages have polling stations. We even use helicopters to transport polling stations. I believe Arunachal Pradesh has the highest altitude polling booth on record. In Gujarat, a polling booth was set up in the Gir Forest for just one voter, who was in the middle of nowhere, but we ensured a polling booth was set up for them. All I mean to say… … ensure the polling booth was set up for them. All I mean to say is that we truly leave no stone unturned in our unwavering commitment to strengthening democracy, ensuring that we are always fully prepared and election ready no matter the circumstances. I firmly believe that India’s Election Commission sets a global standard as a benchmark for conducting free and fair elections. It is the Apex decision-maker. This in itself is such a remarkable story that the world’s top universities should consider it a case study. They should analyze the management behind it as a valuable learning example. Given the sheer number of voters, can you truly grasp the immense depth of political awareness? All of this will make for an excellent case study for the younger generation worldwide. To me, I love democracy. This is one of the main reasons I love the United States, but there’s just nothing quite as beautiful as democracy when it functions in India. Like you said, 900 million people registered to vote. It really is a case study. It’s beautiful to see that many people come together willingly, passionately casting a vote for some person to represent them like they’re putting their heart in that. It’s really important for a person to feel like their voice is going to be heard. It’s beautiful. Speaking of which, you are loved by a lot of people. You are one of the most powerful humans in the world. Do you sometimes think about whether this much power has a corrupting effect on your mind, especially across the many years that you’ve been in power?…

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