NEW DELHI: The iconic Burj Khalifa in Dubai was lit up in the colours of the Indian tricolour to mark the second visit of Prime Minister Narendra Modi to the UAE. Modi was received by the Crown Prince of Abu Dhabi and other royals at the airport and taken to the presidential palace, where he signed five government-to-government MoUs with Sheikh Mohammed bin Zayed Al Nahyan in the fields of energy, railways, manpower and financial services.
The MoU between an Indian power consortium and Abu Dhabi National Company to acquire 10 per cent participating interest in the offshore Lower Zakum concession zone is the first Indian investment in upstream oil sector of UAE, transforming the traditional buyer-seller relationship to a long-term investor relationship. Another MoU aims to combat existing malpractices, combat trafficking and organize collaborative programs for Indian contractual workers there. Other MoUs envisage joint projects in rail sector, cooperation between BSE and Abu Dhabi Securities Exchange and an agreement between the Government of Jammu and Kashmir and DP World to establish a multi-modal logistics park and hub in Jammu.
Sunday began with a visit to Wahat Al Karama war memorial in Abu Dhabi, where Modi laid a wreath, and an interaction with Indians at the Dubai Opera House. “The dreams you have here and in India, I assure you, we will make them reality before the set timeframe,” Modi told the disapora.He unveiled a model of Bochasanwasi Shri Akshar Purushottam Swaminarayan Sanstha temple and launched the project via video conferencing. Spread over 55,000 sq mt of land gifted by the Sheikh Zayed Al Nahyan on the Abu Dhabi-Dubai highway, the temple will be completed by 2020, and open to people of all religions. It will be the first traditional Hindu stone temple in the Middle East.
He then went to address business leaders from the Gulf Cooperation Council, and met Sheikh Mohammed bin Rashid Al Maktoum, Vice-President and Prime Minister of the UAE and ruler of Dubai before moving to the 6th World Government Summit, where he delivered the inaugural address as the chief guest.
Praising Dubai for it wholehearted embrace of technology he said, “Technology has empowered the common man, which has given a fillip to minimum government, maximum governance.”
He added, “Despite these immense strides, we have not ended poverty or malnutrition. On the other hand, a huge amount of time and money is going to into making better missiles and bombs. We must remain vigilant that technology is used for mankind’s development and doesn’t destroy it. We need to follow the six ‘R’s that stand for reduce, reuse, recycle, recover, redesign and remanufacture, this will lead to rejoicing meaning ‘anand’.”
He met French Prime Minister and Édouard Philippe and Kyrgyz Prime Minister Sapar Isakov, before leaving for his first-ever trip to Muscat, Oman.After a ceremonial reception and a meet and greet with the Indian community there, he held formal talks with Sultan Qaboos bin Said Al Said, Sultan of Oman, before attending a banquet dinner hosted in his honour. He is expected to return to New Delhi on Monday morning.