Indian Defence Minister Rajnath Singh has acclaimed Bangladesh for its enormous progress in various sectors saying that ‘the way the country is achieving progressing in all sectors, it will rise to new heights of advancement in future’.

He said India as a neighbour was very happy that Bangladesh was moving fast on the path of development by shunning religious fanaticism and taking the path to modernisation, moderation, and secularism.

“The kind of socio-economic development ushered in Bangladesh is an example for several countries in the world,” he said while launching a new warship in Kolkata on Friday.

Without mentioning the name of any particular country, Rajnath Singh said that one of neighbouring countries of India, which is struggling with religious fanaticism, bigotry, and narrow-mindedness, should learn a lot from Bangladesh.

“The country itself is struggling with poverty, unemployment, and terrorism and sometimes it tries to harass India also,” he said adding that on contrary, Bangladesh had shunned religious fanaticism and taken the path to modernisation, moderation, and secularism.

“India has stood by Bangladesh in sectors like health, education, economy, connectivity, and security and will continue to do so in the future,” he added.

While launching the ‘Dunagiri’, a Project 17A frigate at Garden Reach Shipbuilders and Engineers (GRSE) Limited, he also said “If India is increasing its strength it is not only for itself but also for its friends.”

The minister said that India wanted friendly ties with all its neighbours. “Our Navy should be response-ready in the Indian Ocean region, and in times of domestic and international contingency, it must try to become the first responder”.

In this connection, he said, “The Navy should also be ready to support our friends and partners in their times of need.”

The Indigenously built warship INS Dunagiri is named after a peak in Uttarakhand.  It is the fourth warship of Project 17A which was launched in the river Hooghly on Friday. A total of seven Shivalik class frigates will be built for the Indian Navy under this project.