India, July 11 -- Punjab chief minister Bhagwant Mann took a dig at Prime Minister Narendra Modi's diplomatic visits and foreign honours, saying more people watch a JCB machine than the population of countries from which he gets the highest honours.

Mann also criticised PM Modi by alleging that he finds time to tour abroad but "fails" to address the concerns of 140 crore Indians. The ministry of external affairs (MEA) on Thursday termed his comments 'irresponsible'.

"Do not know which countries he goes to. Now he has gone to, I don't know, Magneshia. (But) He is not staying in the country where 140 crore people live. The countries which he is visiting have a population of 15,000. And he got the biggest awards there. Over here, 15,000 pe...