Mark Carney Calls PM Modi a ‘Unique Leader’, Praises His Tireless Work Ethic

Sydney / New Delhi — March 5: Canadian Prime Minister Mark Carney on Wednesday described Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi as a “unique leader,” praising his relentless work ethic and dedication to governance. Carney made the remarks during a seminar hosted by the Lowy Institute in Sydney, Australia, where he spoke about his recent interactions with the Indian leader during his visit to India.

Reflecting on Modi’s political career, Carney highlighted the Indian Prime Minister’s reputation for tireless work. “The guy is unique. He has not taken a day off in 25 years, either as the Chief Minister of Gujarat or as the Prime Minister,” Carney remarked.

In a light-hearted moment, Carney joked with Canada’s Innovation Minister François‑Philippe Champagne about Modi’s campaigning style. “He hasn’t taken even one day off. Every weekend, like you, François-Philippe, he is out campaigning. He gets 250,000 people at his rallies; you get 25 — but that’s okay,” Carney said, drawing laughter from the audience.

Beyond the humor, the Canadian leader also praised Modi’s focus on governance and delivery of welfare benefits, particularly to rural households. Carney pointed to India’s digital payment platform Unified Payments Interface (UPI) as a transformative initiative under Modi’s administration.

“He shared with me an approach that many leaders could learn from. He is very focused on delivery — especially to rural households. A key motivation behind financial reforms and the transformation of payment systems, including UPI, was to ensure that funds reach individuals directly, in real time, without leakage in the system,” Carney said. He added that the initiative has also helped bring hundreds of millions of people into the formal economy.

Carney’s remarks come shortly after his four-day visit to India earlier this month, aimed at rebuilding bilateral relations between the two countries. Ties had deteriorated in 2023 after former Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau alleged that Indian government agents were linked to the killing of Khalistani separatist Hardeep Singh Nijjar in Canada — a claim strongly rejected by New Delhi.

During the visit, Modi and Carney held bilateral talks and moved to strengthen economic cooperation. The two sides reached agreements on critical minerals and uranium supply, and finalized terms of reference for negotiations toward a comprehensive free trade agreement.

As part of the energy cooperation framework, India’s Department of Atomic Energy and Cameco — one of the world’s largest publicly traded uranium producers — signed a $2.6-billion deal for the supply of 22 million pounds of uranium ore to India between 2027 and 2035.

Carney’s trip marked the first visit by a Canadian prime minister to India in eight years. During the visit, he emphasized the importance of stronger trade and defence cooperation between the two nations, noting that the global geopolitical and economic order is undergoing significant change.

“Like India, we recognise that many of the certainties that structured trade, security, finance and diplomacy for more than a generation have now been overturned,” Carney said, underlining the need for deeper collaboration between the two countries.