Modi's second state visit to UAE begins

Agencies
February 10, 2018

Abu Dhabi, Feb 10: Today will mark a watershed moment for the UAE-India relations with Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi arriving in Abu Dhabi for his second state visit.

The two countries are expected to sign as many as 14 agreements during the two-day visit starting February 10, shifting gears of the strategic partnership in a gamut of areas including space technology, skills development, finance and defence cooperation and investments.

Modi's two-day visit on February 10 and 11 will also see work starting on the construction of the first Hindu temple in Abu Dhabi, fulfilling the long-pending wish of the Hindu community in the Capital.

Modi first visited the UAE in August 2015 becoming the first Indian Prime Minister to visit the emirates in 34 years after Indira Gandhi.

Modi will arrive in Abu Dhabi today evening from Palestine. He will meet His Highness Sheikh Mohamed bin Zayed Al Nahyan, Crown Prince of Abu Dhabi and Deputy Supreme Commander of the UAE Armed Forces, and will attend a state banquet.

On Sunday morning, Modi will visit Wahat Al Karama (Martyrs' Memorial) and pay tribute to the martyred war heroes of the UAE. He will then proceed to Dubai where he will deliver a keynote address at the 6th World Government Summit, in which India is the chief guest country.

Modi will also address a 1,800-strong gathering of the Indian community at the Dubai Opera, which is expected to be a scaled down version of his public address in 2015. More than 50,000 Indians had thronged the International Cricket Stadium in Dubai to listen to their Prime Minister on his first visit.

The Opera event is significant as Modi will flag off the laying of the foundation stone of the first Hindu temple in Abu Dhabi, which will happen simultaneously and will be live-streamed into the iconic Dubai Opera auditorium.

Indian Ambassador to the UAE Navdeep Singh Suri said the latest visit by the Indian PM will mark the dawn of a new era in the India-UAE relations.

"During the year, we have seen major UAE investments into India, a significant increase in defence and security cooperation, a transformation in our energy ties from a buyer-seller relationship to a strategic partnership."

New trajectory in UAE-India ties

Since Modi's first visit, the trajectory of the India-UAE ties have hit a renewed pace with two countries forging a new era of cooperation through the signing of a comprehensive strategic partnership agreement.

During Modi's tenure, Sheikh Mohamed bin Zayed Al Nahyan visited India twice - in February 2016 and January 2017.

The two governments signed 17 bilateral agreements in January 2016, and 14 agreements in February 2017. 

The UAE targets to invest $75 billion in India's infrastructure development. UAE's investments in India is also soaring. In October last year, the Abu Dhabi Investment Authority (Adia) signed an agreement with India's National Investment and Infrastructure Fund to invest $1 billion in India. DP World has signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) with India's National Infrastructure and Investment Fund (NIIF) in May 2017 to invest $1 billion in India.

The UAE is home to more than 3.5 million Indians - the biggest Indian diaspora in the world, and 1,706 flights weekly operate between the two countries.

Comments

An Indian
 - 
Saturday, 10 Feb 2018

Before commencing construction work of Hindu Temple in Abu Dhabi, the UAE government must have put condition to Modi to solve the Babri Masjid issue.

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News Network
June 15,2020

New Delhi, Jun 15: Two officials working with the Indian High Commission in Islamabad have reportedly gone missing, sources said.

The two officials are untraceable for the last few hours.

Recently news agency reported on how Pakistan 's spy agency ISI has been tailing and harassing Indian officials and also increased their presence at the residence of Acting High Commissioner Gaurav Ahluwalia.

This incident came in the backdrop when two Pakistani officials were caught red-handed and sent back trying to collect classified information and spying in Delhi.

South block is watching the developments closely, the Indian mission has also launched a complaint with local authorities and taken up the matter Pakistan Foreign Ministry.

This incident can cause a further dip in the already tense India-Pakistan relations.

Earlier in the month, India deported two Pakistani officials for espionage activities in India.

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News Network
April 9,2020

Apr 9: The UAE Cabinet, chaired by His Highness Sheikh Mohammed bin Rashid Al Maktoum, Vice President and Prime Minister of the UAE and Ruler of Dubai, adopted a resolution to grant paid leave to select categories of employees at the federal government.

This move is part of a series of precautionary measures and procedures taken by the UAE government to bring the Covid-19 pandemic under control.

The resolution stipulates that married employees of the federal government may take fully paid leave to take care of their children below the age of 16. The age condition shall not apply to people of determination, as well as in cases where a spouse is subject to self-isolation or quarantine that requires no contact with family members, upon a decision from the Ministry of Health and Prevention.

The resolution also applies to employees whose spouses work in vital health-related occupations, such as doctors, nurses, paramedics and other medical jobs that require exposure to infected people, as well as employees of quarantine centres, throughout the emergency period witnessed by the country.

Pursuant to the resolution, the relevant ministry or federal authority may ask employees holding essential technical occupations to work remotely instead of taking leave.

The resolution was issued in line with the UAE government's keenness to support employees and provide them with a safe and healthy working environment, as well as to protect the health and safety of government employees and their families, during the current crisis that requires greater efforts, additional working hours, and in some cases, exposure to infected people.

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News Network
May 22,2020

Mumbai, May 22: The Reserve Bank of India (RBI) on Friday reduced repo rate by 40 basis points to 4 per cent in an effort to further boost liquidity in the economy which has been reeling under the impact of COVID-19 induced countrywide lockdown.

As a result, the reverse repo rate stands at 3.35 per cent, said RBI Governor Shaktikanta Das. The six-member monetary policy committee (MPC) voted 5:1 in favour of the decision.

Repo rate is the rate at which a country's central bank lends money to commercial banks, and the reverse repo rate is the rate at which it borrows from them. 

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