Prime Minister Narendra Modi has said Indian tourists visiting France would soon be able to make payments using India's Unified Payments Interface (UPI). Addressing the Indian community on Thursday upon his arrival in Paris, PM Modi said India and France have reached an agreement for the use of UPI.


PM Modi said Indian tourists will be able to make rupee payments using UPI from atop the Eiffel Tower.


"In France, an agreement has been made for the use of India's UPI...It will be started from the Eiffel Tower, and now Indian tourists would be able to make payments in Rupees, through UPI, in the Eiffel Tower," PTI quoted PM Modi as saying.


Last year, the National Payments Corporation Of India (NPCI), the umbrella organisation that offers UPI payments, signed an MoU with France's online payment system 'Lyra'.


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In his nearly hour-long speech at the La Seine Musicale to the Indian diaspora amid chants of "Modi, Modi" and "Bharat Mata ki Jai", PM Modi said a statue of great Tamil philosopher Thiruvalluvar would be built in the Cergy Prefecture this year.


He also said that France would grant long-term five-year visas for students pursuing a masters degree in the European nation and  announced the opening of a new Indian consulate in Marseille, PTI reported.



PM Modi described India as a "model of diversity" and highlighted that Wimbledon had recently described tennis legend Roger Federer as "Thalaiva" (a Tamil word for leader).


"Who will not be proud to know that India has become the fifth largest economy from 10 in over nine years," Modi said and stressed that it would not take long for the country to become a USD 5 trillion economy.


Recalling his connection with France dating back to 1981, PM Modi said he was the first member of Alliance Francaise Centre in Ahmedabad.


"My attachment to France is quite old, and I can never forget it. Around 40 years ago, a cultural centre of France was started in Ahmedabad, Gujarat, and the first member of that very centre is today talking to you," the prime minister said.


After the event, PM Modi went to the Elysee Palace in Paris for a private dinner hosted by French President Emmanuel Macron.