The two-day annual Indo-Japan meet ended on a high note on Thursday with Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe saying like his grandfather former Japanese PM Nobusuke Kishi, he too would like to remain a friend of India forever.
Speaking at the plenary at the Mahatma Mandir, Abe said long ago his grandfather had met the then prime minister Jawaharlal Nehru. “Nehru introduced my grandfather as a person coming from a country he respected the most,” Abe recalled.
Prime Minister Narendra Modi said if India and Japan become stronger, they would provide stability in Asia and the world. Describing Japan as a “perfect partner”, Modi invited more Japanese investment and more people from the country to come and work in India.
Besides the genuine appreciation of each other, the strongest message came in the joint statement of the two prime ministers. In the statement, the two leaders urged Pakistan to bring to justice
the perpetrators of terrorists attacks, including the of November 2008 terror attack in Mumbai and 2016 terror attack in Pathankot.
The statement said the prime ministers looked forward to the convening of the fifth Japan-India Consultation on Terrorism and to strengthening cooperation against terrorist threats from groups including Al-Qaeda and ISIS. The two leaders condemned in the strongest words the growing menace of terrorism and violent extremism.
The statement also denounced North Korea's continued development of nuclear weapons and ballistic missile programmes, including the latest nuclear test conducted on September 3 as well as its uranium enrichment activities.
In his opening remarks, Modi said in 2016-17, India got Japanese investment worth $ 4.7 billion which was 80 per cent more than the previous year. Japan, he pointed out, was the third largest investor in India.
Modi said after the collaboration between Japan Post and India Post, they would introduce cool box service so that the Japanese people living in India can directly get their favourite food from Japan. He also appealed the Japanese community to open more Japanese restaurants in India.
The two-day event proved to be a gainer for India with Abe announcing that Hitachi and Toyota would open two additional Japan-India Institute of Manufacturing (JIM) in addition to the existing ones. The announcement came after he categorically said Japan would cooperate India in skill development.
Another highlight of the meet was announcement of setting up of a Japan Industrial Township over 1,750 acres of land near Sanand, about 20km from Ahmedabad. The township would be near the Tata Nano plant. While 1,200 acre would be industrial, the remaining would be for residential and recreational purposes.
Japan is also all set to provide a boost to hybrid cars in India. Suzuki Motor Corporation chairman Osamu Suzuki said Toshiba and Denso would set up a lithium iron battery plant in Gujarat. These batteries would be fitting in the hybrid vehicles, he said.
The production of cars at Maruti Suzuki's plant in Hansalpur, Gujarat is 2,50,000 units per year and it would triple to 7,50,000 units per year. He hoped that they would be able to provide jobs to 10,000 people.
The leaders also spoke about Varanasi Convention Centre, which is to come up in Varanasi, and said that it would strengthen cultural ties between the two countries.
Earlier in the day, Abe and Modi laid the foundation stone for the high speed bullet train between Ahmedabad and Mumbai. The train is expected to cover a distance of 508km in little over two hours and reduce the travel time by five hours.
