Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Thursday (local time) started his first official visit to Trinidad and Tobago with a formal Guard of Honor at Piaro International Airport, where he was received by Prime Minister Kamla Persian and four members of the Caribbean nation.
This is PM Modi’s first visit to the country as Prime Minister and has been the first bilateral visit by an Indian Prime Minister in the Caribbean nation since 1999. The yatra comes on the invitation of Trinidad and Tobago Prime Minister Kamala Persad-Bissar.
During his two-day migration from July 3 to 4, Modi will hold meetings with President Christine Carla Kangalu and Prime Minister Kamla Persad-Bisasar to strengthen relations between the two countries.
In Port of Spain, the High Commission welcomed him with a post on X: “Welcome to Trinidad and Prime Minister of Tobago, Shri Narendra Modi ji !!”
Earlier, before the PM’s visit, Pradeep Singh Rajpurohit, the High Commissioner of India of Trinidad and Tobago, said that there was a strong desire between both Trinidad and Tobago and the two for deep cooperation with India.
“There is a lot of enthusiasm and enthusiasm among the people … everyone is keen to visit this journey … Already Trinidad and Tobago have an intensive desire for greater engagement and cooperation, and in this context, in this context, both people and the government have a long-term partnership, a broad-based partnership, in a comprehensive partnership.”
He highlighted deep cultural and emotional relations between the two countries, stating that about half of the population of Trinidad and Tobago is of Indian origin.
“There is a large population, about half of the population of this country of Indian origin … They have been here for the last 180 years. Many of them are in their 5th and 6th generations,” he said.
Talking about the Indian migrants in the country, he said, “There is a lot of enthusiasm among the migrant people. They follow the development in India very regularly,” in view of their efforts to preserve Indian heritage for generations.
The High Commissioner also said that during PM Modi’s visit, the discussion will be held on the foundation laid during Guyana’s visit last year for the second India-Caucom Summit.
“Prime Minister Modi visited Guyana last year which was for another Indo-Caricom Summit, and many areas were discussed, and our Prime Minister made several announcements. Many of them, including agriculture, information technology, health and pharmaceuticals, renewable energy … These are likely to be discussed between two sides, and we are some estimated areas.
Rajpurohit also emphasized the importance of the journey in the context of Trinidad and Tobago’s newly formed government, given that many cabinet ministers are of Indian origin.
“The government of Trinidad and Tobago is a new government; many ministers in the cabinet are of Indian origin. They are very excited that they bring all the benefits of India’s development journey,” he said.
He said, “They are the first countries in the Caribbean region to adopt India’s major UPI platform, and they are in the process of implementation,” he said.
Trinidad and Tobago’s PM Modi’s visit is part of a wide five-nation tour to be held from July 2 to July 9. Their stop in Trinidad and Tobago is expected to promote bilateral relations, focusing on areas such as digital finance, renewable energy, health and IT. (AI)
