NRIs hail PM Narendra Modi's UK trip

Prominent NRIs based in Britain have welcomed Prime Minister Narendra Modi's three-day visit to that country beginning Thursday, a statement said.

Mumbai: Prominent NRIs based in Britain have welcomed Prime Minister Narendra Modi's three-day visit to that country beginning Thursday, a statement issued here said on Wednesday.

GP Hinduja, co-chairman of the multi-billion dollar transnational conglomerate Hinduja Group, said Modi's visit will "boost bilateral trade and investment between the two countries".

Mumbai-born British lawyer and the first Asian to set up a law firm in London, Sarosh Zaiwalla said the two countries enjoy a strong bond in economic cooperation, rule of law and relatively free movement of labour.

"Much to the excitement of the (Indian) community, this relationship is set to be celebrated and renewed when Modi lands here tomorrow (Thursday)," Zaiwalla noted.

Indian founder and CEO of UK-based companies RationalFX and Xendpay, Rajesh Agrawal said this is the time to "celebrate the great talents of the Indian community and the benefits they bring to the UK, both economically and socially".

"If the success of the British-Indian community is anything to go by, then the government must recognise that we should not close our doors to such a rich resource of labour if we want to compete in the world market in the long term," Agrawal said.

Founder-CEO of Sun Global Investments Mihir Kapadia said Modi's visit affords London's financial services sector a unique opportunity to cement ties with the world's fastest growing economy.

"British companies must work together with their Indian counterparts to take advantage of the liberalisation of the Indian economy... they should be confident that an investment in India will not go unrewarded," Kapadia said.

Leading a high-level delegation, Modi embarks on his first visit to the UK beginning November 12, where his engagements include a visit to the Ambedkar House and the Jaguar Land Rover plant in Solihull, taken over by the Tata Group since 2008 and ranked the largest investment by an Indian company in the UK.