Prime Minister Narendra Modi addressed a public gathering in Surat, Gujarat, on June 5, 2026, coinciding with World Environment Day. During the event, he inaugurated and laid foundation stones for multiple development projects aimed at accelerating Surat's growth. Key projects include the Tapi Barrage Project designed to ensure drinking water security for Surat for decades to come, various water management and drainage initiatives, and the expansion of the Surat Metro system. A modern ESIC hospital was also inaugurated to provide healthcare services for workers and their families.
The PM highlighted Surat's transformation into one of India's cleanest cities and praised a local campaign where one lakh people conducted a five-day cleanliness drive. He emphasized Gujarat's leadership in renewable energy, noting that the state contributes 50 gigawatts to India's total renewable capacity of 250 gigawatts. Gujarat was also credited as the first state to create a separate department for climate change and to build India's first solar park in Charanka village, Patan.
Modi discussed the global energy crisis, fluctuating petrol prices, and collapsing gas supply chains, but expressed satisfaction that India is facing these challenges strongly due to collective efforts. He outlined India's investments in renewable energy, ethanol blending, railway electrification, nuclear energy, electricity transmission modernization, gas pipeline expansion, and port capacity increases.
The speech also covered infrastructure connectivity projects including the Vadodara-Mumbai Expressway, Dedicated Freight Corridor, and Bullet Train, as well as the Dahod-Bodeli-Vapi corridor aimed at connecting tribal areas of Narmada and Tapi districts to industrial belts and boosting tourism. Politically, the PM celebrated the BJP's recent electoral victories in Gujarat's local body elections and other states including Bengal, Assam, Puducherry, Himachal, Haryana, and Punjab, while criticizing the Congress party's governance.