Union Petroleum Minister Hardeep Singh Puri attended a community reception organised at India House in Houston. Here Hardeep Puri talked about India's economic growth under the leadership of Prime Minister Narendra Modi. Puri also emphasised on Houston's important role in the global energy sector, especially green hydrogen and aerospace. He praised India's growth and said that the country has become the 5th largest economy in 2019, surpassing Britain.

The refining capacity will be increased to 300 million metric tons. Puri also expressed his opinion about the collaboration between the US and India in the clean energy sector. He praised India's refining capacity and biofuel blending initiatives, which aim to increase the refining capacity to 300 million metric tons annually. Hardeep Singh Puri described the US-India Strategic Clean Energy Partnership as the foundation for better collaboration between the two countries in the future.

India to be 5th largest economy by 2019
Acknowledging the political successes of Prime Minister Modi's party in the recent elections, he said that under Modi's rule, the country grew from the 10th largest economy in 2014 to the 5th largest economy in 2019, surpassing Britain.

Investment of US $ 25 billion
The minister also pointed to the ambitious urban development initiative of the Government of India, saying that the country has invested US $ 25 billion (Rs 1.57 lakh crore) for urban schemes from 2017 to 2024.

The number of airports will increase to 150
He compared this investment to building a new Chicago every year, in which urban infrastructure, including new metro systems and airports, is being rapidly advanced. He also said that the Indian civil aviation sector is going to grow a lot, the number of airports will increase from 74 to 150.

Puri praised Houston as a global hub for energy innovation and said that events like "Howdy Modi" in 2019 have shown the strength of India-US relations. The minister praised the contribution of Indian immigrants in different sectors, especially medical and engineering. Along with this, he emphasized on maintaining cultural traditions even while living abroad. He expressed happiness over the warm welcome he received from the Indian community in Houston and also praised their role in enhancing India's global image.