New Delhi, Oct 2 (IANS): Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Sunday said India has never coveted any territory or attacked a country but made sacrifices for the freedom of others.

"India has never coveted any territory, never attacked another country. Yet thousands of Indians gave their lives in the World War I," Modi said after inaugurating the Pravasi Bharatiya Kendra, a state-of-the-art complex dedicated to overseas Indians.

"In the last two years, you have seen how the government rescued people from conflict situations, not just Indians but foreigners too."

The Prime Minister's remarks came amid deteriorating India-Pakistan ties and escalating border tension after the September 18 terror attack that killed 19 Indian soldiers.

Days after the attack, India claimed to have carried out a covert anti-terror operation in Pakistan-administered Kashmir that destroyed seven terrorist launch pads and inflicted "significant casualties" on militant groups across the Line of Control.