Singapore keen to work on urban development with India

Singapore Foreign Minister K. Shanmugam will be here next week for discussions with the new Indian government of Prime Minister Narendra Modi on scaling up bilateral cooperation.

Shanmugam will discuss two-way cooperation in various sectors, including urban development, said Singapore High Commissioner Thuan Kuan.

Thuan Saturday met Urban Development Minister Venkaiah Naidu and conveyed his country's keenness to collaborate on the sector.

Singapore is the second largest foreign investor in India.

"India is now like a fast train and everyone wants to get in," Thuan remarked during the meeting with Naidu.

Singapore has plans to invest in the Delhi-Mumbai Industrial Corridor.

Singapore is also India's largest trading partner amongst the ASEAN countries and serves as India's gateway to ASEAN and East Asia.

The foreign minister's visit is taking place at time when India is reviewing all free trade agreements it has signed. In 2005, India and Singapore had signed a Comprehensive Economic Cooperation Agreement (CECA).

Also, next year, Singapore and India will celebrate the 50th anniversary of the establishment of bilateral relations.

"A very important milestone would be the upcoming 50th anniversary. Our presidents are going to visit each other," Shanmugam had said after co-chairing the third Joint Ministerial Committee meeting with then External Affairs Minister Salman Khurshid last October.

Khurshid had told IANS that India was drawing up a "fairly elaborate and extensive programme of events" that would be built up to 2015 to tell the world "what an important relationship is this".