Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Monday called on the country's youth to help make India a developed country within the next 25 years in time for the nation's 100th year of independence.

Addressing the nation from New Delhi's 17th-century Mughal-era Red Fort on the 75th Independence Day since the end of its two-century British rule, Modi described the next 25 years as the "golden period" in Indian young people's lives.

"We have to make India a developed nation in our lifetime," Modi said in Hindi, one of India's official languages.

India has one of the youngest populations in the world, and its youth population is expected to propel economic growth. People aged 18 to 29 constitute 27 percent of India's population, according to the Youth in India 2022 report by the Ministry of Statistics and Programme Implementation of the Government of India. According to the report, the median age of the Indian population in 2021 was around 28 years old.

However, the demographic dividend of the youth population needs investments in young people's education, health and protection of their rights, such as better employment and gender equality.

Modi said the journey of the past 75 years had seen ups and downs, with India battling against all odds with resilience and perseverance.

Though a middle-income developing economy, India entered the ranks of leading countries in information technology, pharmaceuticals, space science and civil nuclear energy.

With $3.17 trillion, India's economy had the sixth-largest economy by nominal GDP in 2021, behind the United States, China, Japan, Germany and the United Kingdom, according to data from the World Bank.

The prime minister said the world's view of India was changing, and it was looking to the country to help resolve global issues.

U.S. President Joe Biden, in a statement celebrating Indian Independence Day, said the two countries are indispensable partners grounded in a shared commitment to the rule of law and the promotion of human freedom and dignity.

Modi also asked Indians to shed colonialism in their minds and habits.
"Hundreds of years of colonialism has restricted our sentiments, distorted our thoughts. When we see even the smallest thing related to colonialism in us or around us, we have to be rid of it," Modi said.

He pledged to fight political corruption and nepotism, which he said were acting as termites, eating away the gains of development.

India has seen improvements in health and education, but wide inequalities persist. Maternal mortality and gender discrimination remain high, according to the United Nations Population Fund. The low status of women can be reflected in a highly skewed ratio of girls to boys.

Modi said millions of people across the country were commemorating the 75th anniversary of independence by hoisting national flags at their homes and businesses for three days as part of a government campaign "of awakening the spirit of patriotism in every heart."

The main opposition Congress party accused the Modi government of leaving opposition parties out of the celebrations.

With input from AP