Maruti-Suzuki collaboration has sparked off wave of industrial development in India: PM

Asserting that Japan has long been part of important milestones in India's economic development efforts, Prime Minister Dr. Manmohan Singh on Tuesday said that the Maruti-Suzuki collaboration has sparked off a wave of industrial development in India.

Addressing the Japan-India Association, Japan-India Parliamentary Friendship League and International Friendship Exchange Council here, Dr. Singh said: "The Maruti-Suzuki collaboration sparked off a wave of industrial development in India. The Delhi Metro is inspiring a similar revolution in public transportation. Our two flagship infrastructure projects - the Western Dedicated Freight Corridor and the Delhi Mumbai Industrial Corridor - are unmatched both in their size and scale."

"We are also exploring new projects such as an industrial corridor between Chennai and Bengaluru. Our Comprehensive Economic Partnership Agreement was launched in 2011 and last year we signed an agreement for cooperation in the field of rare earths," he added.

He further said: "All this would suggest that ours is already a rich relationship. However, we have set for ourselves higher ambitions consistent with the vision that we have for this partnership."

"Going forward, therefore, we should intensify our political dialogue and expand our strategic consultations on regions and issues of mutual interest. Our defence and security dialogue, military exercises and defence technology collaboration should grow. We should consult and coordinate more closely in global and regional forums," he added.

Emphasising that our relationship should also be anchored in expanded trade and investment relations, Dr. Singh said: " As I told business leaders at the Keidanren function earlier today, there should be no doubt about our commitment and confidence that we will soon restore our growth to the 8 percent-plus levels that we experienced over the past decade."

"This confidence stems from the strength of our economic fundamentals, the thriving spirit of enterprise in our country and the steps that we have taken recently to reform policies and accelerate implementation of mega projects," he said.

"Greater investment by Japanese companies in India's large market will be in our economic as well as strategic interest. This consideration should also guide closer engagement in high technology commerce, clean energy, energy security and skill development," he added.

Dr. Singh further concluded by confessing that Japan has been close to his heart ever since he first visited this beautiful country in 1971.

" It has been my dream to see our relationship grow and prosper, and this is an objective towards which I have worked in the last nine years of my tenure as Prime Minister of India. Today, I am heartened to witness the transformation of India-Japan relations into a durable partnership. I have no doubt your efforts and initiatives will continue to be a source of great strength for the relationship," he added.