Sarbananda Sonowal holds talks with Japan's Vice Minister Terada Yoshimichi in Oslo
Oslo [Norway], June 2 (ANI): Union Minister of Ports, Shipping and Waterways, Sarbananda Sonowal held a bilateral meeting with Terada Yoshimichi, Japan's Vice Minister for International Affairs, and the Ministry of Land, Infrastructure, Transport and Tourism (MLITT) in Oslo on Monday, according to a satement from Ministry of Ports and Shipping.
With a goal to deepen the maritime relations between the two countries, the meeting entailed discussions on multiple areas including investment by Japanese Shipyards, collaboration on port digitisation and green port initiatives, increase in R and D cooperation, upskilling human resources, employment of Indian seafarers in Japan among others.
Both the ministers also discussed about using sustainable technologies, disaster-resilient infrastructure, and enhanced connectivity to enable Andaman Nicobar islands and Lakswadeep islands to be converted into Smart Islands, as per the Ministry of Ports and Shipping.
Acknowledging the rich expertise of Japan in developing island territories, Sarbananda Sonowal said, 'Japan's expertise in this area is highly valued. We see scope for joint work in the Andaman and Nicobar and Lakshadweep islands, particularly in deploying renewable energy, smart mobility systems, and digital infrastructure.
'These initiatives will further our shared commitment to ecological conservation and regional maritime security.' he added
The meeting also discussed about increasing partnership between Indian and Japanese shipyards including Greenfield investment such as Imabari Shipbuilding in Andhra Pradesh and others. Opportunities for co-development of ports and maritime industrial clusters as clean energy hubs were also gauged for mutual cooperation.
Sonowal expressed India's interest in leading Japanese shipbuilding companies such as Imabari Shipbuilding, JMUC, Kanagawa Dockyard, and Mitsubishi Heavy Industries to explore joint ventures and collaborative arrangements with Indian yards.
'Japan's expertise in shipbuilding and ship repair is well recognised, and I see great scope for collaboration in this area. We also invite Japan's Big Three maritime companies--NYK Line, MOL, and K Line--to explore joint ventures and investment opportunities in India's growing maritime sector,' he added.
The Union Minister further added that With our strong bilateral relationship, India's growing maritime industry present a unique opportunity for Japanese shipyards to invest in India in shipbuilding.
Collaboration on port digitisation and green port initiatives will further strengthen the resilience and sustainability of our maritime logistics network,' said Shipping Minister, Sarbananda Sonowal.
Speaking on the occasion, the Union Minister Sonowal said, 'Relations between India and Japan have a long history rooted in spiritual affinity and strong cultural and civilisational ties. Our collaboration under the Quad framework and the India-Japan-Australia Supply Chain Resilience Initiative (SCRI) reflects our shared commitment to strengthening regional maritime security and economic integration.
' India appreciates Japan's leadership in key initiatives such as the International Solar Alliance (ISA), Coalition for Disaster Resilient Infrastructure (CDRI), and the Leadership Group for Industry Transition (LeadIT). As India moves ahead to transform its maritime sector under the visionary leadership of Prime Minister Narendra Modi ji, India is advancing port infrastructure, green shipping, shipbuilding, and digitalisation under 'Maritime India Vision 2030' and 'Maritime Amrit Kaal Vision 2047. India seeks Japan's participation in these transformative initiatives.' Ministry of Ports and Shipping stated.
Japan's Vice Minister of Land, Infrastructure, Transport and Tourism (MLIT) Terada Yoshimichi expressed that India and Japan have very intimate relationship. Japan has been engaged in railway infrastructure development with India but now 'very interested in maritime sector'. Prospects of mutual collaboration in shipbuilding and training of seafarers were discussed and considered positively. He expressed satisfaction over the meeting.
'Emphasising the need to deepen bilateral ties in maritime training and development, as well as cooperation in research and development, both sides agreed to further strengthen collaboration in the maritime sector, especially on sustainable maritime technologies and next-generation ship design. Sonowal evinced India's interest for a MoU for a framework to avail promising avenues for collaboration with Cochin Shipyard Limited (CSL), Indian universities, and public agencies.
On upskilling and employment of India's human capital, Sarbananda Sonowal said, 'India currently has over 154,000 trained seafarers which is capable of support and supplement Japan's maritime workforce. In order to build capacity with rich maritime knowledge of Japanese maritime sector, we see a great opportunity for Japan's maritime leaders in training, upskilling, and employing Indian seafarers, strengthening the cornerstone of our maritime cooperation. India is ready and keen to facilitate Japanese maritime player's interest in training Indian engineers and workers through structured programmes.'
India is developing the National Maritime Heritage Museum (NMHC) at Lothal in Gujarat. It aims to showcase India's rich maritime history and legacy. It also serves as a world-class centre for heritage tourism, education, and research in the maritime sector.
Sarbananda Sonowal shared India's interest to have Japan as a partner for this project. The Minister hoped to close the MoU in this regard soon. He also extended invitation to Vice Minister Terada Yoshimichi for participation at the India Maritime Week, 2025 in Mumbai between 27th and 31st October this year. This major event will bring together key stakeholders from the global maritime community to discuss and facilitate exploration of opportunities for investment, collaboration, innovation, and growth in the maritime sector.
Post meeting Sarbananda Sonowal said, 'The strong & deep Indo Japanese ties are rooted in mutual trust and shared values -- democracy, freedom, and civilisational connection. Today's discussions with Vice Minister Terada Yoshimichi, paved the way to elevate our maritime cooperation further. Japan is one of India's most trusted investors. We deeply value this relationship. Under PM Narendra Modi ji's leadership, India aims to scale new heights with a target of five trillion yen (Rs.3.2 lakh crore) in investments with Japan by 2027.
India will work closely with Japan toward a sustainable future, guided by our shared vision of advanced maritime cooperation that contributes meaningfully to global progress & mutual benefit for both countries.'he added
The meeting was also attended by Onishi Yasushi, Maritime Bureau, MLIT, Hioki Miki, Maritime Bureau, MLIT, Ihara Takumar, First Secretary, Embassy of Japan in Norway & Kimura Hiroko along with Terada Yoshimichi. The Union Minister was joined by Dr Acquino Vimal, Ambassador of India to Norway, Venkatesapathy S, Joint secretary (Shipping), MoPSW; Mandeep Singh Randhawa, Director (MA&MT), Puneet Agarwal, Additional Secretary & Financial Advisor, MoPSW, Madhu S Nair, CMD, Cochin Shipyard Limited, Amit Kumar, IAS, Private Secretary, MoPSW among other officials. (ANI)
Hashtags
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
&w=3840&q=100)
Business Standard
20 minutes ago
- Business Standard
Jubilant gets $600 mn boost from Goldman for Coca-Cola India stake buy
By Megawati Wijaya and PR Sanjai Goldman Sachs Asset Management has provided $600 million to partially fund the equity investment needed by Indian conglomerate Jubilant Bhartia Group for its purchase of a 40 per cent stake in The Coca-Cola Co.'s bottling unit in India, according to people familiar with the matter. Goldman Sachs Asset Management's hybrid fund financed this equity portion by subscribing to the convertible preference shares issued by the group, said the people, who asked not to be named discussing a private matter. The fund — which is part of the investment bank's private credit strategy — sits between traditional debt and equity, and is usually longer in tenure. Convertible preference shares is one of the many ways companies can raise capital to fund their operations and expansion. They can choose to do so because it enables them to avoid taking on debt, while limiting the potential dilution of selling additional common stock. Goldman Sachs and Jubilant Bhartia declined to comment. Coca-Cola in December announced that Jubilant Bhartia will acquire a minority stake in Hindustan Coca-Cola Holdings Pvt., the parent company of the soft drink maker's largest bottler in India called Hindustan Coca-Cola Beverages Pvt. The total acquisition cost is $1.5 billion, the people said. The pizza-to-pharmaceuticals conglomerate will fund the remaining $900 million required for the acquisition with $600 million of equity and $300 million in debt, the people added. Two subsidiaries of the group — Jubilant BevCo and Jubilant Beverages — recently issued rupee-denominated bonds totaling $658 million-equivalent to fund the deal, Bloomberg News reported. Jubilant Bhartia's purchase of a stake in the beverage giant joins a series of foreign firms looking to divest part of their shareholding in local arms. In December, the Indian unit of South Korea-based LG Electronics Inc. filed for an initial public offering, seeking to tap investors in the South Asian country's booming market. Earlier last year, British American Tobacco Plc raised $2 billion selling shares in its Indian partner.
The Hindu
22 minutes ago
- The Hindu
Modi accepts Canadian PM Carney's invitation to G-7, promises 'renewed vigour' in ties
Prime Minister Narendra Modi will represent India at the upcoming G-7 summit in Canada next week, he confirmed on Friday (June 6, 2025), after he was invited by Canadian Prime Minister Mark Carney during a telephone call. The visit to Canada, Mr. Modi's first since 2015, could mark a reset in ties after years of tensions over Khalistani separatists targeting Indian diplomats and the killing of Canadian and Khalistani leader Hardeep Singh Nijjar, which the previous Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau had blamed Indian government agents for. The invitation for India as a guest invitee for the G-7 summit to be held in Kananaskis, Alberta province of Canada could also herald the restoration of India and Canada's diplomatic presence in each other's capitals, where both sides expelled High Commissioners, stopped visas temporarily and cut staff strength drastically in 2023 and 2024. In October 2024, India and Canada also expelled each other's deputy High commissioners, over further charges in the Nijjar case, and spying respectively. This month also marks two anniversaries - 40 years since the bombing of the Air India 'Kanishka' flight on June 23, 1985 by Khalistani separatists in Canada, and two years since the killing of Nijjar on June 18, 2023 near Toronto, and both governments would have to work around each other's sensitivities during the visit. Glad to receive a call from Prime Minister @MarkJCarney of Canada. Congratulated him on his recent election victory and thanked him for the invitation to the G7 Summit in Kananaskis later this month. As vibrant democracies bound by deep people-to-people ties, India and Canada… — Narendra Modi (@narendramodi) June 6, 2025 Announcing the visit, Mr. Modi said his meeting with Mr. Carney would give ties 'renewed vigour'. 'As vibrant democracies bound by deep people-to-people ties, India and Canada will work together with renewed vigour, guided by mutual respect and shared interests. Look forward to our meeting at the Summit,' said PM Modi in social media post, adding that he had thanked Mr. Carney for the invitation to the G-7 and congratulated him on his recent victory in Canadian elections. Mr. Modi's attendance at the G-7, that he has been to every year as a special invitee since 2019, will also give him the opportunity to meet other Western leaders from member countries such as the U.S., U.K., France, Italy, Japan and Germany, for the first time since Operation Sindoor. In particular, Mr. Modi will meet with U.S. President Donald Trump, after a strain in ties over Mr. Trump's repeated assertion that he mediated to end the four-day conflict between India and Pakistan, a claim the Ministry of External Affairs has denied consistently. Ahead of a possible meeting of Mr. Modi with U.K. Prime Minister Keir Starmer in Canada, which would be their first since India and U.K. finalised a Free Trade Agreement, U.K. Foreign Secretary David Lammy is due in Delhi for a one-day visit on Saturday, and will meet External Affairs Minister S. Jaishankar and Commerce Minister Piyush Goyal. Quad partner Australia as well as leaders of BRICS countries Brazil and South Africa are also expected to be special invitees at the summit. Mr. Modi is likely to travel to Brazil next month, where he will share the stage with leaders of Russia and China and other members at the BRICS summit in Rio. At the G-7, all eyes in India will be on the meeting with the Canadian PM, and whether ties can be restored after the bitterness, particularly of the last two year between them. In 2024, Mr. Trudeau's government had suggested restoring High Commissioners, and the Canada's Foreign Ministry, called 'Global Canada', had forwarded the name of Canadian diplomat Christopher Cooter for the post. However, New Delhi had given Ottawa no response. This year, the Ministry has named India's Ambassador to Spain Dinesh Patnaik for the High Commissioner's post in Ottawa, and it remains to be seen whether both sides will now agree to exchange diplomats at the High Commissioner and other levels. The invitation to Mr. Modi comes after some speculation that Canada would not invite the Indian PM given the relationship at present, and the very short notice, with just over a week to go for the Summit added to the surprise of the announcement. However, officials explained that Mr. Carney took over as PM only on April 29 this year after winning polls where he defeated the conservative party considered the frontrunner in elections. The Ministry declined to comment on whether the upcoming G-7 had been discussed during a call between the new Canadian Foreign Minister Anita Anand and Mr. Jaishankar on May 29. It is understood that while the governments had discussed the issue through interlocuters in recent weeks, a formal invitation for special invitees was only sent on Friday.
The Hindu
30 minutes ago
- The Hindu
CPI(M) calls for all-party meet on modalities of census
CPI(M) General Secretary M.A. Baby on Friday (June 6, 2025) urged the Union Government to convene an all-party meeting to address the apprehensions of several States on the possibility of losing representation in the Lok Sabha because of the delimitation expected to be held on the basis of the upcoming general Census. The first meeting of the new #CPIM Central Committee was held from June 3-5. It has issued the following communique: — CPI (M) (@cpimspeak) June 6, 2025 Mr. Baby was addressing a press conference in Delhi, at the conclusion of the first meeting of the newly elected Central Committee of the party. 'The Central government, after deliberate and inordinate delay, was finally forced to announce that it will conduct the general Census in 2027 and along with it, the caste census. Various apprehensions are being expressed, especially by the southern States about the intentions of the government, about the modalities it intends to follow and whether they will lose representation. The government should immediately convene an all party meeting and discuss these issues,' Mr. Baby said. Mr. Baby also informed that the CPI(M) would hold a week-long campaign against terrorism in June, besides sending a delegation led by him next week. The other members of the delegation include Lok Sabha members Amra Ram, K. Radhakrishnan and Su Venkatesan, and Rajya Sabha members John Brittas, Bikash Ranjan Bhattacharyya and A.A. Rahim. Mr. Baby criticised the government's assertion that with Operation Sindoor, it had established a 'new normal' where every terror attack against India would be deemed an attack by Pakistan. He said, 'This means that India-Pak relations will now be dictated by terrorists.' This approach, he said, would only fuel jingoism, strengthen extremist forces on both sides of the border and further widen the communal divide. The Left party said it would hold programmes 'in defence of democracy' to mark 50 years of the declaration of Emergency, adding that the occasion would be used to 'expose the dubious role of the RSS during Emergency'. The decisions were taken at a meeting of the central committee of the CPI(M) held in the national capital from June 3-5.
