Indian MPs to discuss FTA, security in Australia, New Zealand

MELBOURNE: A delegation of Indian lawmakers led by Minister of State for Skill Development Rajeev Pratap Rudy is on a 10-day visit to Australia and New Zealand where various bilateral issues including business and security would be discussed.

"MPs are here to meet Australian leaders and to discuss various aspects of partnerships in the area of business, free trade agreement (FTA), security and also on skill development front," Rudy said while addressing the community.

"These missions are the follow up exercises post the Prime Minister Narendra Modi's visit to Australia.

"We did feel there was lot of commonalities between the two countries and also the procedures of the Parliament house here," Rudy said.

The 10-member delegation includes BJP's Avinash Raj Khanna, Samajwadi Party's Arvind Kumar Singh, Shiv Sena's Shivaji Adhalrao Patil, AIADMK's Ponnusamy Venugopal, Janata Dal's Ali Anwar Ansari as well as CPI (M)'s Jharna Das Baidya would be visiting Canberra, Sydney after wrapping their visit to Victoria.

After competing the Australian leg of the visit that began on May 25, a part of the delegation would be heading to New Zealand.

The delegation was last night greeted by a large group of Indian community leaders here in the presence of Indian consul General Manika Jain.

The delegation which visited Victorian Parliament is also due to visit and attend proceedings in the federal Parliament in Canberra.

"There is lot to take home from here and this is what we are working on," Rudy said.

Welcoming the visiting leaders,the chair of Confederation of Indian Australian Associations (CIAA) Vasan Srinivasan presented sketch plan of smart village project to them with an appeal letter for its implementation in India in bid to promote green habitat and livelhood infrastructures in villages.

"We here have conceived the smart village project for India which envisages to main growth engine of India with objectives for elimination of unemployment entirely, stoppage of migration from villages and environmental tranquillity," Srinivasan said.