Modi warns of resource weaponisation, calls for energy self-reliance

Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Saturday warned that the weaponisation of global resources and strategic sea routes by some countries threatens India's economic security, urging greater self-reliance in energy at his 80th Independence Day address from Red Fort.

Modi said resources such as fuel and medicines are being used as instruments of geopolitical pressure, against the backdrop of the US-Israeli war with Iran that has disrupted shipping through the Strait of Hormuz. Rediff.com reports the narrow waterway handled about 20 million barrels of oil per day in 2025, and India received nearly half its crude and two-thirds of its LNG through it.

India imports nearly 90 per cent of its crude oil and half its natural gas needs. Modi cited the Rs 84,084-crore Samudra Manthan offshore exploration scheme to tap undersea reserves, and noted the government has opened 99 per cent of sedimentary basins for oil and gas exploration.