In April, a group of Indian technology and internet companies pulled out of the project saying it compromised the principle of net neutrality and that websites and apps should be equally accessible.
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Top CEOs of American companies which have brought about the IT revolution sweeping across the globe responded positively to Modi’s gesture.
The PM also visited Facebook’s headquarters with long Q n A sessions and even ended up giving the CEO, Mark Zuckerberg a tight hug.
‘My father is no more and I have my mother who is over 90 years old but still does everything herself.
The BJP leader said that Modi was trying to raise, through the use of modern technology, the economy of undernourished parts of India.
The social media giant has been trying to attract more advertisers in the region and rolled out a version of Facebook that works in developing countries with weak WiFi connection.
He became emotional while answering a question from Zuckerberg on his over 90-year-old mother as he highlighted how she had raised him by going through difficulties like washing utensils of others and working as a labourer. “We also have the strength of the partnership between India and the United States”.
Among the audience was Sudeep Padiyar, employed with a tech firm in Santa Clara, who said he was impressed by Modi’s speech but was expecting more questions. “So I’m hoping you’ll tell us a bit about her”.
Talking to Facebook CEO Mark Zuckerberg in a Q&A at Townhall atFacebook headquartersin San Jose, Modiwas his impressive self.
There is instant voting on decisions because of social media.
He added that this wasn’t just the “case with Narendra Modi”.
“I think a very big change is already happening”, he said.
Modi boasts an 87 percent approval rating in India and is the second-most popular world leader on social media after US President Barack Obama. The initiative sparked a fiery debate in India that came to a head earlier this year when several prominent Indian companies pulled their support for the program, following criticism it interferes with the tenets of net neutrality. He notes that there’s still over a billion of them in his native country that aren’t connected.
Modi spoke about National Optical Fibre Network to take now less penetrated broadband to each of India’s 600,000-odd villages, connectivity for every school and college, and expansion of public Wi-Fi hotspots at airports and railway stations.
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Mr Modi made an analogy about diverting a moving train, and how change happens slowly when dealing with big machines.
