Bhubaneswar/New Delhi, Oct 14 (UNI) The government under the leadership of Prime Minister Narendra Modi has planned a special emphasis on comprehensive development of relations with neighbours, which includes several connectivity projects to connect India with Bangladesh and Myanmar, and eventually push all the way by road, by sea, by air to Vietnam, to Japan, said Foreign Secretary Harsh Vardhan Shringla on Thursday.
In his remarks at the Kalinga Institute of Industrial Technology (KIIT), the Foreign Secretary said that greater connectivity will transform to greater trade, greater investments, people-to-people ties, less illegal migration and more security.
“In other words, we will be living in a zone of prosperity. When Prime Minister Modi talks about "Sabka Sath, Sabka Vikas, Sabka Vishwas”, it is not only just for our country. It encompasses our entire neighbourhood,” he added.
Talking about the rich cultural heritage of Odisha, he said over centuries, Odisha (or ancient Kalinga) had extensive contact with countries of South East Asia and East Asia. “Even today, the Bali Jatra keeps alive the memory of ancient Sadhabas (Odia mariners) who used to sail to distant lands of Bali, Java, Sumatra, Borneo and Sri Lanka for trade and cultural exchange. These maritime trade routes of Kalinga were also instrumental in the spread of Hinduism and Buddhism across the seas to South East Asia.”
Recalling his visit to Sri Lanka a week ago, he said: “Incidentally, about a week back, I visited the famous Dalida Maligawa Temple in Kandy, Sri Lanka, which houses the sacred tooth relic of the Buddha. This was brought there by Princess Hemamala and Prince Dantha from Kalinga in ancient India!”
“These links were disrupted during the colonial period. Today, as you may know, the Government is seeking to rebuild such historical and civilizational linkages within our neighbourhood, with South East Asian countries and the wider region through our Neighbourhood First policy, the Act East Policy and the vision for the Indo-Pacific. We are promoting economic cooperation and cultural ties with these countries,” he added.
“Today, India is a prominent global economy. As we grow and develop, it will be beneficial for us too if our neighbours in South Asia see a stake in our growth and see their development linked with our own growth. We have to take them along so that when we develop, they too develop and the fruits of that are mutually shared.”
On Japan, he said Japan is the fifth largest investor in India. The number of Japanese companies in India has been increasing steadily and today, there are more than 1,450 of them in India.
“Japan is also one of the most important development partners for India. Its loans have been deployed over sectors ranging from healthcare to sustainable development. The introduction of metros starting with Delhi has transformed our lifestyles. The audience I am sure is aware of the Mumbai-Ahmedabad High Speed Rail (MAHSR) project which will shape the landscape of India for decades to come,” he said.
Odisha itself has been the beneficiary of such projects. Several projects including in the area of hydro-electricity development, improvement in the power transmission system, irrigation, sanitation and forestry sector development have been undertaken with Japanese assistance, have had an important role in Odisha’s overall developmental efforts.
“Through the Digital Partnership agreement with Japan, we have been actively promoting interaction between the Indian and Japanese startup ecosystems. It is estimated that overall, Indian startups have raised more than US$ 15 billion from Japan. Softbank, the big Japanese multinational company, has invested billions of dollars in Indian startups like PayTM and Oyo Rooms, whose founder and CEO, Ritesh Agarwal, incidentally hails from Odisha.”
“The Government has placed high priority on Skill Development. The India-Japan partnership is playing an important role here too. We have an agreement on "Manufacturing Skill Transfer Promotion Programme” for training 30,000 persons over 10 years with Japanese style manufacturing skills and practices,” he added.
UNI/RN