Indian business diaspora in Vietnam hails PM Modi's visit

Indian business diaspora hailed Prime Minister Narendra Modi's visit to Vietnam, hoping that it will further strengthen trade ties between the two countries.

"Whenever any leader visits some other country, there is always attention towards it, and that also brings the attention of the business industry. Though 15 years is a long gap, this visit is definitely going to improve the business relationship between the two countries, because today Vietnam is one of the fastest growing economy, and Indian companies should seriously look this market for the growth of trade and investment," Indian Business Chamber in Vietnam chairperson Rajeev Garg told ANI.

He said there is huge potential for trade growth between the two countries, but a more focused and structured approach is required if a target of 15 billion dollar is to be reached by 2020.

He said products such as agricultural products, raw materials, leather, textile and accessories from India have a lot of potential in Vietnam, and likewise agricultural products, electronics, white marble stone and many other products are also exported to India from Vietnam.

Garg added that there should be more ease of operations, and trade barriers should be minimised between the two countries for further growth.

He said more attention on Indian business chambers is needed from the Indian side and there should be frequent exchanges between business delegations.

"Indian and Indian Chambers in small countries should be given more attention from the Indian side. Besides, there should be more business delegation exchanges between the countries, which will help increase business," he said.

TATA Power head in Vietnam Shenbagam Manthiram said a good connectivity and overcoming some cultural barriers will tremendously help improve trade.

"There are tremendous opportunities available; be it the power sector, the defence sector and other areas. If connectivity is there between the two countries, the language barrier is broken a bit and the cultural barriers are shaken up, and there is great opportunity," he said.

J.V. Ratnam, General Director-cum-Country Manager for Bioseed in Vietnam, said, "India and Vietnam have a good bilateral trade. The Prime Minister's visit will further strengthen areas like agriculture, defence and power, where there can be possibilities of increasing the business."

"India has been contributing to the growth of Vietnam. Like in agriculture, we were the first guys to set up the rice research station for them," he added.

When asked about how Indians are treated in Vietnam, he said, "Indians are very well respected here may be because of the legacy they carry. They are considered as brothers here. Vietnamese hold Indians in high esteem, because of jobs and business that Indians do here. We have been contributing intellectually as well."

He also mentioned that Buddhism is followed in Vietnam so they look at India as a gateway to understanding Buddhism better.

Indian Prime Minister Modi, who is on a two-day visit to Vietnam, arrived at the Noi Bai International Airport in Hanoi earlier Friday night.

An Indian Prime Minister is visiting Vietnam after a gap of 15 years.

He will hold talks with his Vietnamese counterpart Nguyen Xuan Phuc for closer ties in key areas of defence, security, trade and oil exploration.

Prime Minister Modi will also meet President Tran Dai Quang.