Canadian Prime Minister Mark Carney praised Prime Minister Narendra Modi, calling him a “unique guy” and admiring his exceptional work ethic during a seminar at the Lowy Institute in Sydney on Wednesday. Reflecting on their recent meeting during his visit to India, Carney said Modi has not taken a single day off in 25 years, from his tenure as Gujarat Chief Minister to his time as Prime Minister. He noted that Modi regularly campaigns on weekends, drawing crowds of around 250000 people at rallies.

Carney also highlighted Modi’s strong focus on delivering benefits to rural households. He pointed to major financial reforms such as the transformation of India’s payment systems, especially the Unified Payments Interface, which enables direct transfer of money to individuals without leakage and helps bring millions into the formal economy.

The Canadian leader said these initiatives aim to ensure welfare benefits reach people in real time while expanding financial inclusion across the country. Carney’s visit to India was aimed at rebuilding bilateral ties after recent strains. During the trip, both leaders oversaw the signing of several memorandums of understanding covering technology and cultural cooperation.

Calling the relationship a new era of partnership, Carney said Canada is well placed to support India’s energy needs. He also confirmed that Canadian company Cameco has signed a long term agreement to supply uranium to India. Highlighting the close people to people connections, Carney noted that nearly two million Canadians have Indian roots and many travel between the two countries regularly. He also said both nations are working toward renewing a defence cooperation agreement.

Disclaimer: This image is taken from PTI.