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August 15, 2015
Modi to visit Abu Dhabi, Dubai
NEW DELHI: Prime Minister Narendra Modi will visit the United Arab Emiratres on August 16-17. He will be the first Indian Prime Minister to visit the UAE after Indira Gandhi visited the Gulf country way back in 1981. He will arrive in Abu Dhabi on Sunday, and will go to Dubai the next day.

Modi, India's charismatic leader, was invited to visit UAE by Shaikh Mohamed bin Zayed Al Nahyan, the Crown Prince of Abu Dhabi and Deputy Supreme Commander of the UAE Armed Forces.

During his visit, Modi will have discussions with the Abu Dhabi crown prince and meet the ruler of Dubai Shaikh Mohammed bin Rashid Al Maktoum on Monday. Maktoum is the Vice-President and Prime Minister of the UAE also.

Security is a major area of cooperation which includes joint efforts to check IS terrorism and maritime protection. Trade and investment in India's infrastructure are also top on the agenda. The UAE is flush with funds.

"During my visit, I seek to enhance cooperation in energy, trade and will talk to investors on why India is an attractive destination to invest,” the Prime Minister said.

UAE is India's third largest trade partner (India is UAE's second) and the sixth largest oil exporter to India. It was India's third largest trading partner in 2014-15, after the US and China. The trade amounted to $60 billion.

Modi's wide-ranging talks in Abu Dhabi are also expected to lure UAE-based companies to invest in India's aviation, telecom, ports and road transport sectors. Modi's visit is also aimed at reviving the India-GCC free trade talks, held up for long.

Modi is expected to take up the problems being faced by the Indian workers in UAE.

Last year, Minister of External Affairs Sushma Swaraj had announced measures to help UAE’s expatriate Indian community, during a Dubai visit, such as a welfare fund with a grant of Dh500,000 to the Indian Association in Sharjah and Dh500,000 to the Indian Association in Ajman.

The Indian Prime Minister is also scheduled to visit the Shaikh Zayed Grand Mosque, UAE's largest, and a labour camp in Abu Dhabi. He will also visit the zero carbon Masdar City in Abu Dhabi to study the working of alternative enrgy, during his time in the city.

In a flawless itinerary, Modi has chosen to spend considerable time interacting with the Indian community in the UAE.

In the curse of last one year, delegations from the Centre, Gujarat, Madhya Pradesh, Telangana and Kerala had held extensive talks in UAE for investment in India.

India-UAE trade crossed USD 59 billion in 2014-15, making the country India's third largest trading partner after China and the US.

Former Prime Minister Manmohan Singh was expected to visit the UAE after the visits of Rashid to New Delhi in 2007 and 2010. However, Indian president Pratibha Patil paid a five-day State visit to the UAE in November 2010.

Modi will leave for Dubai by 17th noon after completing the official discussions and the mosque visit.

The Indian community will give Modi a momentous reception on Monday evening at 6 at the Dubai International Cricket Stadium. Indian expatriates from the region are expected to participate. By Friday over 50,000 people had registered themselves for the reception and the registration has been closed. The stadium has a capacity to accommodate only 30,000.

The Indian Community Welfare Committee (ICWC) is organising the reception. It is making arrangements to transport thousands of Indians to the stadium from the nearest Metro stations as well as from other landmark points, including the Dubai Mall and Dubai Internet City, Dr BR Shetty, a member of the organising committee and Indian businessman, said.

The rockstar reception will be on the lines of the event held in Madison Square Garden in New York last year.

"He is on a strategic trip to the UAE, I want our Indian community to take full advantage of this trip," said BR Shetty.

Dubai's average day temperature is 42 degrees Celsius and the humidity is around 60% in the evening. A risky combination. Therefore, the whole open air stadium will be air-conditioned and free food and water will be distributed to the audience, the organisers said. For achieving proper cooling by the time the programme starts, the air-conditioning will be started early by a day, on Sunday evening.

The ICWC said in a statement that it has set up a website to facilitate registration of community members for the meeting.

"The details of the programme and registration form for the participants are available on the website www.namoindubai.ae. Registration is compulsory for participation so that sufficient arrangements can be done," said the statement undersigned by Committee convenor K Kumar and Dr Shetty.

Almost 80 per cent of UAE's population is expatriate and Indians constitute 30 per cent of the total population of UAE, the largest community. There are nearly 30 lakh Indian expatriates. The largest remittances to India come from the UAE. In 2014, they remitted USD 12.64 billion to their homes back in India.

The unskilled and semi-skilled workers from India constitute most of the work force. They are mostly employed in the construction, petroleum and transport industries, most of them working and living in difficult conditions, having come over searching for a livelihood. A majority of them are from the south Indian States of Kerala and Tamil Nadu. There is a large number of Biharis also.

The contribution of Indians in the development of the UAE has been an accepted fact.

ALSO SEE: Modi's Abu Dhabi, Dubai visit - New opportunities

About United Arab Emirates, a federation of seven sheikhdoms

Modi to visit Shaikh Zayed Grand Mosque in Abu Dhabi


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