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Indo-Canada Chamber of Commerce’s India Mission 2014 had a stopover at Visakhapatnam on January 18, 2014. The delegates participated in three events there that included B2B meetings, a summit on bilateral trade and investment, a visit to the Gitam University. The delegates also met with Hon. Ganta Srinivas Rao, Andhra Pradesh’s Minister for Minister for Infrastructure & Investments and Ports, Airports, Natural Gas.

Canada-India Summit on Bilateral Trade & Investment

Hon. Ganta Srinivas Rao, Minister for Infrastructure & Investment and Ports, airports and natural gas, was the guest of honour at the summit. The panellists in the summit from Andhra Pradesh included Solomon Arokia Raj, the collector of Visakhapatnam; MT Krishna Babu, Secretary, Infrastructure & Investment Department; Jayesh Ranjan, Managing Director, Andhra Pradesh Infrastructure Corporation; Anoop Singh, Special Secretary, Information Technology and Communications department; Chandana Khan, Special Secretary, Youth Advancement, Tourism & Culture; MV Satyanarayana, IAS; Dr. N. Yuvraj, Visakhapatnam Urban Development Agency.

Although the summit was held on the board theme of Canada-India bilateral trade and investment opportunities, it focussed on Visakhapatnam and the coastal Andhra Pradesh. Minister Hon. G. Srinivas Rao highlighted the development of coastal Andhra Pradesh and the opportunities that are available to global investors. The officials from the Andhra Pradesh government made a series of presentations on different aspects of the state’s economy that included opportunities in petroleum, chemicals, petrochemicals, information technology and PPP projects in tourism, youth advancement, and culture.

In the second session the participants from Canada provided a briefing on the growing investment and trade opportunities in Canada. The speakers in the session included Hon. Joe Daniel, Member of Parliament; Naval Bajaj, President, ICCC; Vikram Jain of Canada’s Trade Commissioner’s Service; Ray Chan, Government of Saskatchewan; Surva Bezawada, and Abu Becker.

In his remarks, Naval Bajaj, President, ICCC, emphasized the need for Indian states to step up to forging links with Canada both at the federal and at the provincial levels. “In India Mission 2014, we have visited altogether eight Indian states primarily to underline the significance of the opportunities in the different parts of India, and away from the main metropolises,” he said.

He added, "In each of these states, we have covered different sectors, taking care to highlight the sectors that are important for the state."

Subsequently, the India Mission delegates had an interactive session with the Minister Hon. G. Srinivas Rao.    

Interactive session at GITAM University

The India Mission 2014 delegates then visited the GITAM University in Visakhapatnam. K Ramakrishna Rao, Chancellor; and G Subrahmanyam, Vice Chancellor; greeted the delegates and led the delegation into an interactive session. The session witnessed participation by close to 350 faculty members, students of the university.

During the past 33 years, GITAM has been committed to excellence in higher education foraying into diversified disciplines of learning. It has steadily evolved into a world class university recognized for the experiential learning it offers, the competent and compassionate faculty, the stellar research laboratories, academic vibrancy and cosmopolitan culture.

The university has three campuses – Visakhapatnam, Hyderabad and Bengaluru. Known for its creative dynamism and flexibility, the university offers varied programs blending skill development and value orientation to shape the career of students and develop holistic personality to be privileged members of the civil society. The university also offers several programs through distance learning to increase access to higher education with emphasis on reaching the unreached.

GITAM already has a twinning program with a couple of Canadian educational institutions. During the meeting with the Chancellor and the Vice Chancellor, ICCC President Naval Bajaj agreed to a proposal for signing a memorandum of understanding between the Chamber and the University. The University and the Chamber would be working on different educational initiatives. The University representatives also agreed to lead a delegation to Canada in 2014.

B2B meetings

The India Mission delegates had B2B meetings in Visakhapatnam with members of the Confederation of Indian Industries to explore opportunities for forging linkages for trading. The meetings were held in sectors such as agriculture, education, and information technology.

Indo-Canada Chamber of Commerce’s India Mission 2014 participated in four business events during their stopover at Hyderabad. The Government of Andhra Pradesh and the Confederation of Indian Industries (CII) organized an interactive session on Indo-Canadian investment. The delegation visited the India Green Business Council (IGBC) and the headquarters of Infotech Enterprises. The CII hosted a dinner reception for the delegation in the evening.

Exploring Investment Opportunities

B. Ashok Reddy, Chairman, Confederation of Indian Industries (Andhra Pradesh), and the President of Infotech Enterprises Ltd. kicked off the session by his welcome address. He dwelt upon the increasing volumes of trade that India has been developing with non-traditional partners such as Canada. He expressed confidence that the trade ties between Canada and India have a great future.

Speaking on the occasion, Naval Bajaj, President ICCC, emphasized on the growth of non-traditional sectors of trade – especially the knowledge sector. He said the expansion of the knowledge sector in Hyderabad and Andhra Pradesh has put the city and the state on the global map and in a different league.

The ICCC President informed the audience of the objectives of the trade mission, and said, “This is the third trade mission that our Chamber has led to India. It is a multi-city, multi-sector mission, with emphasis on education, agriculture and energy.”

Hon. Joe Daniel, Member of Parliament, lauded the ICCC for its role in fostering trade. He said that as a member of the Canadian federal government’s committee on aerospace, he was keen to explore synergies that may evolve between Canada and India in the sector.

Sanjay Jaju, representative of the Andhra Pradesh government also spoke on the occasion. The other speakers in the first session included Rajat Kumar and K. Pradeep Chandra.

In the second session on sector investment opportunities, the panelists included Ray Chan, Government of Saskatchewan, Sohail Saeed of the City of Brampton, Harish Chandra, Chairman, Mahalazmi Infra Centures, UB Desai, Director IIT and Vikram Jain, Trade Commissioner. Naval Bajaj moderated the session and spoke about the agriculture, education and energy sectors.

• Ray Chan spoke about agriculture and food processing sector opportunities in Saskatchewan

• Sohail Saeed discussed opportunities in the education sector in Brampton

• Vikram Jain of the Trade Commissioner’s Services dwelled upon the overall energy sector

• Y Harish of the Government of Andhra Pradesh spoke about the opportunities in the infrastructure sector in the state

• U B Dessi discussed the opportunities in gaming, animation, and the overall ICT sector

Visit to IGBC

The delegation visited the India Green Business Council (IGBC) in Hyderabad. The Indian Green Building Council (IGBC), part of Confederation of Indian Industry (CII) was formed in the year 2001. The initiative was launched by the Godrej group’s Sohrabji Godrej Green Business Centre. The vision of the council is to usher in a green building movement in India and facilitate India to become one of the global leaders in green buildings.

A green building is one which uses less energy, water and natural resources, creates less waste and is healthier for the people living inside compared to a standard building. The officials at the IGBC made a presentation about the procedures that have been laid down for buildings to be certified as environmentally friendly. These include:

• Energy saving to the extent of 30 - 40 % right from day one
• Enhanced indoor air quality
• Higher productivity of occupants
• Potable watersaving to the tune of 20% - 30%
• Enhanced day light & Ventilation

Visit to Infotech Enterprises

Thereafter, the delegation visited the headquarters of Infotech Enterprises. President Ashok Reddy informed the delegation of the range of services that his company provides. “Infotech Enterprises provides engineering solutions, including product development and life-cycle support, process, network design and optimization, and data management solutions to major organizations worldwide.” For the last two decades, Infotech leverages a global delivery and collaborative engineering model to achieve measurable and substantial benefits for our clients.

Dinner reception

In the evening, the mission delegates participated in a dinner reception hosted by B. Ashok Reddy, Chairman of CII Andhra Pradesh and President of Infotech Enterprises. The Hyderabad business community and political leaders participated enthusiastically in the event.

Interactive session at PDPU

The India Mission 2014 delegates participated in an interactive session of the students of the Pandit Deendayal Petroleum University (PDPU) and Hon. Joe Oliver, Canada’s Minister of Natural Resources. Speaking on the occasion, Minister Oliver said, “In Canada and India, governments and the private sector are exploring how to expand the energy relationship in ways that benefit both our countries.”

He further emphasized, “Our academic institutions also have a role to play. In developing the people and future leaders we need to take the energy industry – which is a global industry – to greater levels of performance. We should continue to identify and leverage our collaboration to advance clean energy technology development between our two countries, for example, to low carbon technologies, oil and gas production and energy efficiency.”

In his remarks, Naval Bajaj, President, ICCC, “Many Canadian universities and colleges offer programs specializing in the technical aspects of oil and gas. Dalhousie, Memorial, Manitoba, Calgary, NAIT are a few of the schools training Canadians and foreign students in energy related technologies. It is these value additive technologies and services that differentiate Canada from other commodity producers.” He added, “As India seek new sources of energy to meet steadily rising demand, the opportunities for Canada as both a commodity producer and technology provider will grow.”

Business reception & B2B meetings at GCCI

The Gujarat Chamber of Commerce and Industry (GCCI), a MoU partner of ICCC organized a business reception for the India Mission 2014 delegates. DJ Pandian, the Principal Secretary, Government of Gujarat, was the keynote speaker at the reception. He lauded the efforts ICCC has been undertaking in promoting closer economic ties between Gujarat and Canada. He noted the support ICCC gives biannually to the Vibrant Gujarat business convention.

In his remarks, Naval Bajaj emphasized the multidimensional work that the Chamber has been undertaking in the bilateral trade sphere. He expressed confidence that the Canada-India bilateral ties were on the right track and that the on-going negotiations on the comprehensive economic partnership agreement (CEPA) would pave the way for closer and more robust economic ties.

ICCC President suggested that GCCI should start a Canada desk to facilitate bilateral opportunities and assist Gujarat-based small businesses to explore the Canadian market. He pledged that ICCC would be happy to collaborate on such a joint program.

Mike Mehta, Director, Business Development, ICCC, also emphasized the dedicated and single-minded approach the Chamber has adopted to promoting trade relations through the India Missions over the last three years.

Shanker Patel, President, GCCI, announced that his Chamber would lead a business delegation to Canada in June 2014.

Visit to Abellon Clean Energy

India Mission 2014 delegation visited the Abellon Clean Energy facility. Abellon CleanEnergy is an integrated sustainable energy solutions provider with a vision to contribute to clean energy generation through bioenergy, including solid bio-fuel, liquid bio-fuels, bio-power, and other forms of clean energy generation.

The company's focus is on developing products and solutions that lower greenhouse gas emissions and productively harness the abundant energy of the sun, benchmarking processes such as photosynthesis, to convert it into useful forms of energy.

Abellon has a portfolio of low-carbon energy technologies and a range of products and services, which together can meet the demands from the industrial, public and commercial sectors, as well as the community on a large scale.

The company already has a base in British Columbia and is planning a foray into Quebec. It may also considering setting up a unit in Brampton or Saskatchewan where it may use whwat husk into pellets. The group includes other clean tech entities such as Abellon Agrisciences, Abellon EPC and xcelris.

Indo-Canada Chamber of Commerce’s (ICCC) India Mission 2014 reached Mumbai for a two-day stopover on January 14 and January 15. The delegation participation in a multi-sector conference and B2B meetings organized by the All-India Association of Industries and the World Trade Centre on the first day.

Subsequently, the delegation participated in a breakfast session organized by Hon. Joe Oliver, Canada’s Minister for Natural Resources, visited the headquarters of Eros International, one of Indian cinema’s largest film production and distribution companies with a global footprint.

The grand finale in Mumbai was a business reception jointly organized by the Canadian Consulate in Mumbai, the Government of Alberta and the Confederation of Indian Industries (CII). The theme of the reception was India's energy security: Canada, a partner of choice.

AIAI-WTC Mumbai conference

ICCC’s MoU partners – the All India Association of Industries (AIAI) and the World Trade Centre (WTC) organized a conference on ‘Exploring agriculture, education and energy sector collaboration between Canada & India’. The conference was followed by B2B meetings between the delegates of India Mission 2014 with Indian businesses.

Speaking on the occasion, Naval Bajaj, President, ICCC, emphasized the need for ceaselessly exploring trade opportunities between Canada and India, especially in the sectors where already considerable exchange has been taking place. “Agriculture, education and energy are sectors that have seen tremendous traction in recent years. And we should leverage these sectors to reach altogether different and new levels of cooperation.”

He said, in agriculture, the two-way trade is already half-a-billion dollars’ worth. In education, the number of Indian students commencing their study in Canada has increased 255% in two years – from 3,250 in 2008 to 11,543 in 2010.

Naval Bajaj explained that recently India and Canada has seen opportunities of collaborating through twinning programs where the students undertake part of the studies in India and complete them in Canada. In energy, as India’s need for energy, minerals, metals and wood products increases, Canada is well positioned to be a key supplier.

Dr. R. Gopal, representing the DY Patil University of Navi Mumbai, made an extensive presentation on the process of twinning between Canadian and Indian educational institutions, and also discussed in details, the regulatory challenges that may hinder closer cooperation in the sector.

Vijay Kalantri, President AIAI, in his remarks emphasized that for the two countries to build trade, they will need to focus on small businesses and on non-traditional sectors.

Breakfast with Joe Oliver

Canada’s Minister for Natural Resources, Hon. Joe Oliver, hosted a breakfast for the ICCC’s India Mission 2014 delegation. The Minister is in India to participate in the eleventh edition of Petrotech 2014 – the international oil and gas conference.  

During his address, the Minister said, “With our abundance of natural resources, Canada is well positioned to play a leading role in supplying the energy required to meet India’s growing demand. The Canada–India energy partnership holds enormous potential, and we are determined to seize this economic opportunity for the future benefit of Canadians and Indians alike.”

Visit to Eros International

The delegation then visited the headquarters of Eros International – one of India’s largest film production and distribution companies, with global footprints. It may be recalled, Eros International was bestowed with the first ICCC-Chanchlani Foundation Global Indian Cinema Award during ICCC’s Winter Gala 2013 (November 2013). Eros International is among the entities operating in the Indian entertainment sector that has been instrumental in making the sector truly global.

Jyoti Desphande, CEO, Eros International, informed the India Mission delegation that the company has serious plans to enter the Canadian market, and is already in talks with media and cable networks for collaborative ventures. The company plans to export television programs and also utilize the post-production facilities available in Canada. It may even consider opening an office in Canada soon if the plans fructify.

Mike Mehta in Mumbai

Business reception The Consulate General of Canada in Mumbai, the Government of Alberta and the Confederation of Indian Industries (CII) organized a business reception on theme India’s energy security: Canada, a partner of choice. Minister Oliver and Alberta’s premier Hon. Alison Redford were the main speakers at the event. ICCC During the reception, the following salient features about Canada’s energy sector became evident, and these factors could easily support India growing energy needs. Canada has the third-largest proven oil reserves in the world The third largest producer and exporter of natural gas Canada has the world’s largest reserves of high - grade low-cost uranium and it makes up a quarter of global production Canada is also a world leader in renewable and green energy Canada is the third largest producer of hydroelectricity in the world and the fifth largest ethanol producer

Minister Oliver said, “Our government is committed to meeting the strategic imperative of diversifying our energy markets and strengthening our position as a globally competitive exporter. With much of the spadework behind us, India and Canada are ready to enter a new era of cooperation and commerce that will help create jobs and opportunities across our country.”

Premier Redford, in her remarks, said, “India is an important emerging market and the potential for the country to be a new market for our oil and gas is enormous.”

Naval Bajaj, in his vote of thanks, spoke about the various levels at which collaboration in the sector has reached. He said, Canada is building strong ties with India to share science, technologies and trade through the Canada–India Energy Forum, memorandums of understanding and our annual bilateral merchandise trade agreements

Mahratta Chamber of Commerce Industries and Agriculture

Indo-Canada Chamber of Commerce (ICCC) and the Mahratta Chamber of Commerce Industries and Agriculture (MCCIA) have agreed to sign a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) to promote trade. At an interactive session organized for the visiting delegation of ICCC’s India Mission 2014, Naval Bajaj, President, ICCC, and Ajay Mehta, Vice President, MCCIA, announced that the two chambers would work closely to foster bilateral economic relations between Canada and India, with special focus on Maharashtra.

In his remarks, ICCC President Naval Bajaj highlighted the role of the Chamber in promoting bilateral trade ties between Canada and India. “Over these three-and-a-half decades, we have played a pivotal role in influencing opinions and changing mindsets to help mould right policies for creating respectable space for the business people to develop their business,” he said, and added, “These policy initiatives have brought our bilateral relations to a stage where enhanced interaction and increased cooperation have become organic and endemic.”

The ICCC believes that a new chapter is being written on the Canada-India relations, a chapter that holds a promise of prosperity for both our countries. “We are the oldest bilateral organisation of any kind working on the Canada-India corridor, and we are also the largest Indian Diaspora organisation in Canada. These two aspects of our Chamber give it a unique position and perspective,” Bajaj said.

Surendra Kumar Jain, President of MCCIA welcomed the delegation. He informed the delegates that Pune is also emerged as a hub for research and development and is a big centre for wind energy, space research, and water resources management. He informed the delegates that logistically, too, the city has access to one major and three minor ports and there were plans to work on cargo from Pune to Winnipeg.

Over 60 Pune-based businesses attended the interactive session organized at the MCCIA. The interactive session was followed by B2B meetings. In his presentation on Pune, Ajay Mehta highlighted the economic profile of the city. “With a 10 percent GDP growth annually, Pune is the hub for both automobile and information technology sectors,” he said.

Auto sector giants such as Tata Motors and Bajaj; and IT sector behemoths such as Infosys and Honeywell have made Pune their base for many years. In fact, Infosys has more employees in Pune than anywhere else in India. In addition to these powerhouses which propel the growth of the city and the region, there are over 12,400 industrial units. Agriculture, food processing, digital media companies are also thriving in and around the city. Nearly 30 % of the city’s population is below the age of 30.  

In his remarks, Anant Sardeshmukh, the Director General of MCCIA emphasized the cultural and educational background of the city. He informed the visiting delegation that of the 48,000 international students who come to India, nearly 50 % choose Pune. The city and the adjoining regions boast of 61 colleges that has 23,754 students.

In the agriculture and food processing sector, too, the city and the adjoining regions have made steady progress. It ranks second in India in chicken products and second (after Gujarat) in milk products. It is also the largest producer of wine in India, accounting for 80% of India’s production.

Sohail Saeed, Director, Economic Development, Brampton, made a presentation on the city as an investment destination. Ray Chan of the Saskatchewan Government similarly made a presentation on the province.

Kirloskar Brothers

After the interactive session with MCCIA, the delegates visited the Kirloskar Brothers Limited Platinum Facility in Pune. Sanjay Kirloskar, Chairman and Managing Director, greeted the delegation. The Platinum Facility is a heritage site for the conglomerate, which has played a pivotal role for over a century in building India’s self-reliance in agricultural mechanization and other industrial processes.

ICCC President Naval Bajaj informed the representatives of the Kirloskar group of the proactive role the Chamber has been playing in fostering B2B linkages between Canadian and Indian companies for the purpose of enhancing trade.

Sanjay Kirloskar He discussed his group’s future plans, shifting focus and the possibilities of establishing business linkages with Canada. He iterated the possibilities of synergies between his group and the province of Alberta especially on oil and gas. He also said that many of the company’s pumps could easily find a market in Canada’s mining industry.

Sanjay Kirloskar also gave a brief overview of the group. Kirloskar Brothers Limited:

The group is:

• Largest manufacturer and exporter of centrifugal pumps from India

• Leading manufacturer of Valves and Hydel Turbines

• Energy efficient innovative pumping solutions for core sectors such as Power, Water, Irrigation and Industries

• Manufactures the largest pumps by size and horsepower in India

• Commands the highest market capitalization amongst the pump manufacturers in India

• Pioneered centrifugal pumps in India and introduced the following in India:

• Split case pumps, process pumps, large vertical mixed flow pumps

• Canned motor pumps

• Metallic Volute pumps

• Concrete Volute pumps

• Primary / secondary moderator pumps for liquid sodium for fast breeder reactor technology for Nuclear Power Plants

Naval Bajaj, President, ICCC, emphasized the existing synergies between Kirloskar Brothers Ltd. and the Indo-Canada Chamber of Commerce, which had been the main reason for visiting its facilities during the India Mission 2014. ICCC's India Mission 2014 delegation's visit to Kirloskar Brothers Limited was facilitated by Vinod Munshi of the IIT Alumni Canada.

The delegation of India Mission 2014 met Hon. Bhupinder Singh Hooda, the Chief Minister of Haryana Saturday to discuss collaboration possibilities between Canada-based small entrepreneurs and the state of Haryana.

During the meeting, the ICCC President informed the Haryana Chief Minister that during the last three years, the ICCC had brought 300 Canadian businesses to India during the three successive India Missions that the Chamber had organized since 2012. Earlier, Bajaj had briefly met Hooda at the PBD-India 2014.

Hooda said Haryana had a huge potential in the area of solar energy and energy from solid waste. The state also had a vast network of canals which could be used for harvesting renewable energy.  He said countries such as Spain and China have evinced a keen interest in this area.

Hooda said Haryana had prepared a solid waste policy for Gurgaon and Faridabad under which 1,000 metric tonne of solid waste was collected every day. Urbanization is taking place in Haryana at a rapid pace. More than 50% of India’s National Capital Region (NCR) falls in Haryana.

On measures undertaken in the education sector, the Haryana Chief Minister said that the state government is developing the Rajiv Gandhi Education City in Sonipat. The city would attract international educational institutions, and would eventually offer education facilities to about 150,000 students.

Hon. Joe Daniel, Member of Parliament, was part of the delegation that met the Haryana Chief Minister.

India bestows its highest diaspora honour
on Canadian serial entrepreneur & philanthropist Vasu Chanchlani

Toronto, Ontario, January 9, 2014: His Excellency Shri Pranab Mukherjee, President of the Republic of India, today conferred the Pravasi Bharatiya Samman Award (PBSA), the highest honour bestowed on non-resident Indians, by the Government of India on Mr. Vasu Chanchlani at a glittering ceremony held at the Vigyan Bhavan in New Delhi.

Overwhelmed by the singular recognition, Mr. Chanchlani noted, “I am humbled by the honour to be included in the august group of distinguished past Global Indian recipients.” He emphasized that he was heartened by the recognition of his philanthropic contribution in the Canada-India corridor.

Naval Bajaj, President, Indo-Canada Chamber of Commerce (ICCC), in his congratulatory message, said, “Our Chamber was awarded the PBSA in 2012. On the heels of the ICCC’s uniquely global recognition by the Government of India for its role amongst the Diaspora, we are extremely pleased that our Chamber’s nominee and a prominent member, Mr. Chanchlani, has been recognized for his outstanding accomplishments as a serial entrepreneur and philanthropist.”

One of the senior-most ministers, The Honourable Tony Clement, President of the Treasury Board of Canada said, “Mr. Chanchlani’s passion for supporting philanthropic causes in Canada is second only to his passion for those related to India. His commitment to Canadian institutions in raising the stature of India globally and promoting the interests of Canada, India, and Indo-Canadians has benefited many.”

Mr. Chanchlani has helped set-up multi-million dollar endowments at the McMaster University, the University of Toronto and the Waterloo University with research centres named after him. He has also established three global research/recognition awards through endowments at McMaster University, the Canadian National Institute for Blind and at the Canada India Foundation.

Canada’s Minister of State (Multiculturalism), Hon. Tim Uppal, said, “This is a proud moment that Mr. Chanchlani is the first Indo-Canadian to be honoured for his path-breaking philanthropic initiatives."

Hon. Patrick Brown. Member of Parliament and the Co-chair of Canada-India Parliamentary Association, said, “I am well acquainted with the wonderful work that Mr. Chanchlani has been doing for many years. This award to Mr. Chanchlani is testimony to the fact that the Indo-Canadian community is not only contributing to the fabric of the Canadian society but also to their country of origin.”

His Excellency Stewart Beck, the High Commissioner of Canada to India, said, “I congratulate Mr. Chanchlani for getting the prestigious Pravasi Bharatiya Samman Award and for the great work that he is doing.”

Aditya Jha, recipient of the Order of Canada, expressed unbridled joy at Mr. Chanchlani’s award. “As a rare serial entrepreneur, who has successfully started and exited from six technology ventures, Vasu has been guided by a unique philanthropic vision that doesn’t believe in merely giving donations to charity, but to support transnational research/ recognition initiatives that contribute to capacity building and finding long-term solutions to intractable problems.”

Indo-Canada Chamber of Commerce, being one of the oldest and the largest diaspora organizations in Canada, is proud that a prominent member of the Chamber who has had the unique distinction of twice winning the Chamber’s award: ‘Technology Achievement Award’  and the ‘President’s Award’; has been further recognized through this prestigious global diaspora award from the Government of India.

Diaspora organizations

The first panel discussion was on Diaspora Organizations, moderated by TP Sreenivasan, a former ambassador. The panelists, besides the ICCC President, were Ashook Ramsaran, President of GOPIO, USA; Dato’ Seri Utama S. Samy Vellu, Special Envoy, Malaysia; Lord Diljit Singh Rana, Member, House of Lords; K. Kumar, Convener, ICWC.

The theme of the discussion was the diaspora organizations across the world. These organisations form a focal point for people of India origin and Non-Resident Indians to get together for social and cultural purpose and also to discuss areas of concern. 

This session brought together various diaspora organizations and members who shared the concerns and expectations of Indians abroad in various countries. The diaspora organizations have a vital role in collating and voicing these ideas. The latest trends in the lives of overseas Indians and generate ideas for engaging the diaspora on economic, cultural and social issues were the highlights of the discussion.

In his speech, Naval Bajaj emphasized and elaborated on four measures to ensure that the engagement with the diaspora organizations becomes more meaningful. These measures are:

• Outreach & promotion
• Proactive engagement of business in culture
• Acknowledging Performers
• Using Technology

Meetings with India’s federal ministers

In addition to these sessions, the ICCC President led the India Mission delegates to meetings with key Indian federal government ministers. These included Hon. Anand Sharma, Minister for Commerce, Hon. Vayalar Ravi, Minister for Overseas Indian Affairs; Hon. Salman Khurshid, Minister of External Affairs.

In the meeting with Minister Sharma, and Minister Khurshid (held separately) the ICCC President and the delegates discussed the Comprehensive Economic Partnership Agreement (CEPA). Minister Sharma informed the delegation that the ninth round of the negotiations would be commencing soon.

In the meeting with Minister Ravi, Naval Bajaj spoke extensively about the need to engage the diaspora youth. “Time is now opportune for interaction between the Young Indian Diaspora and the Indian Youth. Diaspora’s engagement for India’s growth will yield best results when it connects across generations,” he said.  He added, “Our Chamber will be happy to host with the support of MOIA a Convention of members of Young Indian Diaspora all over the globe and of Young Indian Leaders.”

Bajaj emphasized that he was heartened to know that Canada has been identified as one of the countries with high Indian Diaspora population where the proposed Overseas Indian Youth Club (OIYC) will be set up. “We shall be glad to offer all possible assistance to the Indian High Commission in Ottawa and Consulate General of India, Toronto for setting up OIYC. Our Chamber will be moving into its new spacious premises next month where we may be able to allot one room for an Overseas Youth Club in Canada,” he said.

Meetings with India’s state ministers

The ICCC President and the India Mission delegates then met Hon. Narendra Modi, the Chief Minister of Gujarat, and the Prime Ministerial candidate of the Bharatiya Janata Party in the forthcoming general elections. He extended an invitation to the Gujarat Chief Minister to make an official visit to Canada. The ICCC delegation will be meeting Mr. Modi in Gandhinagar next week.

The delegation also met Kerala Chief Minister Hon. Oommen Chandy, and discussed with him the possibility of a Kerala business delegation’s visit to Canada, where ICCC would be the host.

The delegation also met Sam Pitroda, the advisor to the Indian Prime Minister on telecommunications.

MOU with GOPIO

ICCC President and Ashook Ramsaran, the President of Global Organization of People of Indian Origin (GOPIO) signed a memorandum of understanding for cooperation in the areas of mutual interest. The MoU will be valid for three years.