CDRI now has 25 countries, seven international organisations: MEA

The Coalition for Disaster Resilient Infrastructure (CDRI), which was launched by Prime Minister Narendra Modi in 2019, has 25 countries and seven international organisations as members now with Bangladesh being the latest entrant, the Ministry of External Affairs (MEA) said on Thursday.

MEA Spokesperson Arindam Bagchi said the objective of the CDRI is to promote the resilience of new and existing infrastructure systems to climate and disaster risks in support of sustainable development.

Noting that the prime minister launched the CDRI during his speech at the UN Climate Action Summit on September 23, 2019, Bagchi said since then, the coalition has grown in membership and has 25 countries and seven international organisations as members now.

 

Bangladesh is the latest entrant to the CDRI, he said at an online media briefing.

To a query on whether COVID-19 would be treated as a disaster in term of the CDRI's mandate, Bagchi said he is not in a position to comment on it.

On queries as to whether Bangladesh has agreed to India's request to allow clinical trials of Covaxin in that country, he said, "I think the questions refer to a proposal made last year, so I would refer you to the manufacturer, Bharat Biotech, if they have any details on this."

Asked if India is planning to open flight services to some countries, Bagchi said due to Covid, regular international flights remain suspended and the civil aviation ministry should be contacted on when the suspension would be lifted.

To a question on media reports claiming that India is transforming Mauritius into a military hub, he said the government of Mauritius has made detailed statements on the project there, including in its Parliament, and all this information is available in the public domain.

Asked about former Iranian president Mahmoud Ahmadinejad's statement that Iran's relationship with India has far more potential than its ties with China, the MEA spokesperson said, "I would not like to comment on such media reports that were mentioned."

"Let me emphasise that India and Iran enjoy historical and cultural ties. We have been moving ahead with various new initiatives, including on connectivity," he added.

Bagchi also said External Affairs Minister S Jaishankar is in Tehran, representing India at the swearing-in ceremony of newly-elected Iranian President Ebrahim Raisi.