Modi referred to pluralism in India in an article in the prestigious Economist magazine whose brief excerpts was tweeted by its Europe business correspondent based in Paris – the Asia section of the special edition has hit the stands worldwide today.
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The Torana was a gift of friendship from former Indian prime minister Dr Manmohan Singh and was supposed to have marked the launch of Kuala Lumpur’s Little India on Oct 27, 2010.
Although there was a few sharp criticism of Modi in the British media over a perceived rise in religious intolerance in India, alongside noisy protests outside 10 Downing Street and in Parliament Square (featuring a mix of Sikh, Kashmiri and, surprisingly, Nepali groups, the latter protesting India’s alleged interference in Nepal’s internal affairs), the British government rolled out the red carpet.
Nick Boyle, the CEO of Lightsource Renewable Energy, said: “We are delighted to be announcing this investment in India”. The importance India attaches to ties with Singapore is enormous.
On the sidelines of the the two summits, Modi is expected to hold bilateral meetings with the leaders of Japan, China and Malaysia and possibly those of Vietnam and Myanmar.
“The ASEAN nations have welcomed India’s “Act East Policy” and we in India are extremely enthusiastic to have better relations with the ASEAN family in areas such as defence, security and cultural ties”.
Advocating the need for a stronger Indo-US ties, Pete Sessions, Chairman of House Rules Committee, said under Modi’s tenure there is much greater realisation of strengthening the ties between the two largest democracies of the world.
Top Indian banks, such as the ICICI Bank and State Bank of India, have been eyeing a substantial presence in Singapore for over a decade.
He further said the focus of the visit will also include “five S plank” of scaling up trade and investment, speeding up connectivity, smart cities, skills development and state focus.
The Indian community event at Singapore will take place at the Singapore Expo Centre. So it wasn’t surprising when he wowed the 60,000 British-Indians attending his recent London rally with a handy trick for calculating the time difference between India and the UK.
Modi will join the program for the inauguration of Torana Gate and also interact with Corporate Malaysia.
On his second day, Modi will also address the India-Singapore Economic Convention while there will be a brief meeting with select Singapore CEOs. The two sides are likely to sign a number of MoUs.
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If seats are still available at Singapore Expo – as Indian community organisation circulars assert – this tells a story that is at variance with the USA or the UAE.
