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India-Kuwait bilateral ties set to take new
dimensions
Elegance,
eloquence, and an astounding knowledge of economic
and political issues, and you have M Ganapathi,
India's new envoy to Kuwait.
Deepa Pant
KUWAIT: Fluent in various languages, Ganapathi is
from Chennai and received a Post-Graduate degree in
Chemistry. He is a member of the Indian Foreign
Service and has, in the course of 31 years as a
diplomat, held a wide range of appointments in the
Ministry of External Affairs, New Delhi, and in
Indian Embassies/High Commission in Moscow (twice),
Sofia, Singapore, London, Belgrade and Sydney.
After serving as Consul General of India in Sydney,
Ganapathi arrived in Kuwait in January to assume his
office as the new Indian Ambassador to Kuwait
In an exclusive wide-ranging interview with The
Daily Star, Ambassador Ganapathi recalled the
strength and history of Indo-Kuwait ties and
reiterated that further development of bilateral
relations in various fields can be brought about by
the strengthening of mechanisms of joint cooperation
for the benefit of both countries and their people.
In his interview the envoy noted that there is great
potential for further economic and cultural
cooperation between the two countries.
At the very outset, the envoy remarked that India
and Kuwait continue to enjoy traditional friendly
relations. "Geographical proximity, historical trade
links, cultural affinities and presence of a large
number of Indian expatriates have all continued to
sustain and nurture the longstanding relationship
over the years," said this seasoned diplomat.
"We are partners in confronting major global
challenges and our political relationship is
excellent and at its best," noted the envoy.
"Our relationship is based on mutual understanding
and respect for each other. We share identical views
on a series of issues be it environment, economic
development or the war against terrorism," he
continued.
On the political front, the envoy said, the
"excellent political understanding" between the two
countries should encourage us to strive together to
identify areas where new initiatives could produce
desired results.
Indo-Kuwait ties have been by tradition close and
friendly and in the past few years there has been a
trend of expansion of the bilateral economic and
commercial relations.
Cooperation in the field of manpower development is
an important dimension of the Indo-Kuwaiti
relationship, as approximately over half a million
Indians are working in Kuwait.
While turning to economic relationship he was quick
to add that it was not commensurate with the true
potential. Ganapathi called for vigorous efforts to
expand trade and investment cooperation. "We have a
task of adding greater economic and commercial
content to our partnership," pointed out the Indian
envoy.
Non-oil bilateral trade stands at over 600 million
US dollars. Since both the countries share
geographical proximity there is no reason why in the
near future it should not touch approximately one
billion dollars, he pointed out.
On that score, he said promoting and strengthening
the two-way economic relations between India and
Kuwait was on the top of his agenda here. "We are
going to focus on further improving economic ties
and trade," and indicated that “the aim is to target
non oil trade and investment in both oil and non oil
sector," pointed out the envoy.
"I have been holding a series of meetings with
ministers and officials who have expressed similar
thoughts on expansion of trade and investment
between the two countries," he said.
"In terms of our economic component some agreements
are already available or are ready for signature
like the agreement on mutual promotion and
reciprocal protection of investment, agreement on
avoidance of double taxation, etc. Once we have the
necessary politico-legal framework, opportunities
will materialize,” explained the envoy.
He hailed the contribution of the Indian community
in different developmental projects. Citing some of
the big Indian companies that have already started
looking at Kuwait, he said, Larsen and Toubro have
recently secured a project for new fuel depot at
Kuwait Airport. SPIC has had its presence here and a
number of other companies are looking at various
opportunities.
There is a noticeable upswing in Indo Kuwait
relationship. This will culminate in the visit of
the Amir of Kuwait His Highness Sheikh Sabah
Al-Ahmed Al-Sabah to India.
His Highness the Amir, would travel to India in
mid-June. The visit “would further consolidate
Indo-Kuwaiti friendship and partnership."
Elaborating further, the diplomat noted that the
MOUs were in line with the comprehensive economic
cooperation agreement reached between the Gulf
Cooperation Council members and India at the GCC-India
conference that was held recently in Muscat.
He disclosed that a high-level business delegation
will accompany His Highness the Amir during his
India visit. The business delegation will meet with
the Federation of Indian Chamber of Commerce (FICCI),
Confederation of Indian Industry (CII) and Assocham
with a view to strengthening bilateral trade
relations and boosting investment opportunities in
both countries.
Indians are among the largest and most vibrant
expatriate nationals in Kuwait and they are involved
in the various sectors of the economy, said the
envoy. Their contribution especially in the
development of its trade, health care and education
is commendable and added that remittances from them
constitute a significant contribution to the Indian
economy.
The presence of Indians living and working in Kuwait
in itself plays a positive role in fostering
India-Kuwait relations, he said.
The envoy further remarked that "one of our most
important mandates is to take care of the community
and try to alleviate their problems as much as
possible."
"The Indian community has made a name for itself by
virtue of their hard work, dedication and their
respect for the law and order of the host country."
"It is a matter of great joy that our hosts in
Kuwait call them as a preferred community. We are
grateful to His Highness the Amir and the Kuwaiti
leaders for their care and benevolence of the
community," he said.
"As Pandit Jawahar Lal Nehru said in the 1950s,
--'Indians settled abroad have their heart in India,
but their first duty is to the country in which they
live and work in.' I am confident that the Indian
community will continue to provide the same sort of
duty and loyalty to Kuwait."
While commenting on promoting tourism to India, the
envoy said, India offers a dazzling array of
destinations and experiences but is yet to be
marketed to its full potential as a tourist
destination.
With world class healthcare professionals and
nursing care available in India, he said that
medical tourism is an important point of note.
Meanwhile, moving on to Indo-Pak relations, sounding
positive on the current pace of Indo-Pak peace
process, the envoy noted that the composite dialogue
process may result in 'tangible' progress on some
key issues.
"Indo Pak relations have shown considerable forward
momentum, and our government has taken various
initiatives for the development of peaceful and
friendly relations with Pakistan through promotion
of people to people contacts," said the envoy.
"Both countries have decided to take various
initiatives. Commencement of bus and train services
was an important confidence-building measure to
promote the bilateral peace process. Our Prime
Minister has offered a 'Treaty of Peace, Security
and Friendship' to Pakistan as a culmination of the
ongoing peace process."
On being asked to comment about Iran's nuclear
issue, he replied that "India has centuries old
links with Iran. In the current context, our
government has stated that Iran like any other
country has the right to peaceful use of nuclear
energy in consonance with its international
obligations."
"Our government has made it clear that the issue
must be resolved through dialogue and discussions,”
he reiterated.
While dwelling on Iraq, he said, India has had
historical relations with Iraq. "India sincerely
wishes to see restoration of peace and stability so
that Iraqis can return to a normal life. We hope
that with the establishment of the new government
conditions for restoration of peace and security for
its people will return."
So now that he has been in Kuwait for some time, how
does he enjoy being here, The Daily Star asked of
him. "Kuwait feels very much like home," he said.
“In Kuwait, I must admit, diplomatic life is very
vibrant and it has been a professionally satisfying
stay so far."
In his spare time, he likes to read, watch sports
(is an avid tennis, cricket and hockey fan), enjoy
classical music and go for walks. He said he is very
keen to learn to read and speak some Arabic and
hopes he would be able to do so.
His wife Uma is a trained Montessori Teacher, who
likes to dabble in painting, especially Palekh and
Fedoskino School of art, which she picked up during
their tenure in Russia. "She is a great music and
movie buff too," he said of his wife Uma. The couple
has two daughters, who are studying in Sydney.
Reflecting on his various postings, he said he has
greatly enjoyed his stints at all these countries.
So did he have any favourites… he was quick to add,
that all were very professionally satisfying.
Commenting on his life as a diplomat, he says he
enjoys his task of building bridges of friendship
between the people of India and foreign countries.
This marks his first time in the Middle East and
Ambassador Ganapathi looks forward to being in
Kuwait where he intends to combine work with the
enjoyment of gaining a comprehensive knowledge of a
new country, and on an optimistic note; the envoy
concluded that he hopes for new era of dynamic
cooperation between India and Kuwait. |
