India, Aug. 12 -- As India prepares to celebrate Independence Day, Hindustan Times continues its special series revisiting some of the most iconic Independence Day speeches delivered by the country's Prime Ministers. In the twelfth episode, we revisit Prime Minister Atal Bihari Vajpayee's Independence Day address from the Red Fort in 2003 - his last-ever August 15 speech as Prime Minister.

In his 2003 address, Vajpayee highlighted India's economic progress and said the country's economy had emerged as the world's fourth largest in purchasing power terms. He spoke about economic growth, development, poverty alleviation, employment and the need to ensure that the benefits of progress reached ordinary citizens.

Published by HT Digital Cont...