India, Aug. 15 -- Prime Minister Narendra Modi pushed for greater self-reliance, local manufacturing of everything from fertilisers to EV batteries, and pledged to protect farmers amid trade tensions with the US, delivering his 12th straight Independence-Day address on Friday.

"Farmers, fishermen, cattle rearers are our top priorities", Modi said in his customary address at the Red Fort in New Delhi, soon after hoisting the Tricolour under a cloudy, monsoon sky in New Delhi.

"Modi will stand like a wall against any policy that threatens their interests. India will never compromise when it comes to protecting the interests of our farmers," he said.

The agriculturists of the country made the country self-sufficient, Modi added, underscor...