Preparations in full swing for PM Narendra Modi's speech at Madison Square Garden, 8pm IST.

Organizers expect about 18,500 Indian-Americans to attend. They are among more than 30,000 across the US who had registered for free tickets. The speech will also be broadcast on a big screen in Times Square.Modi won a spectacular electoral victory in May and was catapulted into the international arena.

This marked a major change since 2005, when the US denied him a visa for his alleged complicity in sectarian violence in his home state of Gujarat.Modi will speak from a rotating platform measuring 15 meters (yards) across.

He will speak Hindi, but is expected to give some remarks in English, according to event organizer, the Indian-American Community Foundation.