PM Narendra Modi to visit Singapore from November 23-25; to deliver 2015 Singapore Lecture

NEW DELHI: PM Narendra Modi will visit Singapore from November 23-25 this year. While the signing of a strategic partnership agreement between the? two countries will be the highlight of the visit, Singapore has also chosen Modi to deliver the prestigious Singapore Lecture for 2015.

The government is also planning a San Jose like community reception considering the significant presence of Indians and people of Indian origin there.

?"The focus will be on economic and strategic cooperation. The strategic partnership agreement will elevate ties to the next level," said an official.

Singapore foreign minister K Shanmugam will visit India October 12 to hold talks with his counterpart Sushma Swaraj in preparation for Modi's visit.

Modi will also address an economic convention comprising top business leaders from both countries. The visit will mark the 50th anniversary of establishment of diplomatic relations between India and Singapore.

India's 10th largest trading partner and second largest source of FDI, Singapore also provides a template for Modi's smart city initiative. Modi is looking to involve Singapore in India's infrastructure push with a special focus on ports, smart cities, skill development, water and waste management.

The 2 countries have engaged actively since Modi came to power in May 2014. His counterpart Lee Hsien Loong immediately wrote to Modi inviting him to visit Singapore at the earliest. This was followed by a visit to India by Shanmugam in June 2014. While Swaraj visited Singapore to inaugurate celebrations for 50th anniversary of bilateral ties, chief ministers of Rajasthan, West Bengal, Telangana and Andhra Pradesh too visited the country. Modi himself travelled to Singapore in March this year top attend the funeral of its first prime minister Lee Kuan Yew.

Ethnic Indians in Singapore number around 400,000, comprising over 9 per cent of the total population of the country. About the same number are Indian expatriates who hold Indian passports and serve mostly in financial, software and construction sectors. With almost 70 per cent of Indian community in Singapore of Tamil origin, Tamil is one of the 4 official languages there.