Fact check of Prime Minister's 70th Independence Day speech (Special)

New Delhi, Aug 15: A fact check on claims made by Prime Minister Narendra Modi during his Independence Day speech from the Red Fort: * Claim: Linked 700 million to Aadhar and direct benefits Fact: 716.7 million Aadhar-linked beneficiaries through various schemes as on March 31, 2016 * Claim: Solar energy grew by 116 per cent over one year Fact: Growth of 95 per cent from 4 GW in June 2016 to 7.8 GW in June 2016 * Claim: Added 201 million people under JDY Fact: More than 228 million bank accounts opened, 24 percent have no money * Claim: Five million connections under Ujjwala LPG scheme Fact: Applications cleared -- 3.5 million, connections issed to 1.7 million households * Claim: Mudra yojna benefited 35 million families; 80 per cent women benefitted Fact: In 2015-16, 34.8 million accounts received loans; 79 per cent loans were for women, 18 per cent for SCs and 5 per cent for STs.