New Delhi, Aug. 15 -- As India moves into its 80th year of independence, wishes have poured in from leaders across the world lauding India's growth trajectory and transformation.

In a letter on Saturday, Australian Prime Minister Anthony Albanese extended wishes on the occasion of Independence Day and recalled how the path to a free and independent India was anything but easy, but through the sheer power of will, belief and determination, its dawning heralded a bright new beginning filled with hope.

"In the eight decades since that most extraordinary of days, India has gone from strength to strength. Today, as the world's largest democracy and fastest-growing major economy, India fills us with awe at the scale of its achievements and th...