Huge Scope to Boost Business Ties Between India and UK: Minister James Brokenshire

UK’s secretary of state James Brokenshire said that there is huge scope for strengthening the bilateral business relationship between India and UK as both countries have the strong modern engineering skills; technologies which are pushing the next mobility revolution in the globe.

The secretary was speaking in Pune city last week as part of his three-day visit to India to boost bilateral business ties between the two countries.

Brokenshire took part in a series of meetings with Pune metropolitan region development authority (PMRDA) officers, including Kiran Gitte, metropolitan commissioner and CEO, PMRDA and top executives of the Pune smart city development corporation limited (PSCDCL).

Various matters including the e-vehicle technology and the measures which are required to take to push the smart city projects in the Pune city were also discussed in the meeting concluded.

Brokenshire noted that he came to see the first-hand scale of potential between Midlands and Maharashtra in terms of boosting the ties between two countries.

There are plenty of opportunities for developing technological partnership and the visit to India’s Maharashtra state is the first in strengthening the ties.

The state secretary has also noted that he had a positive meeting with the concerned officers including Gitte for working jointly to strengthen e-vehicle project for Pune and Midlands as both regions are at the very same stage in the e-vehicle engineering and technology.

The secretary further said that in January next year the UK will send a delegation to India to take part in a symposium on International Automotive Technology to be organised by the Pune-based Automotive Research Association of India.

He described his meeting with India’s minister for heavy industries Anant Geete as positive after talks on the partnerships in automotive and battery-powered vehicles.

Brokenshire had also spoken to Bharat Forge, auto parts producer.

Sharing his views on Indian students travelling to the UK for higher education, the secretary noted that there has been a 30 per cent rise in the number of visas being provided to Indian students who come to the UK to pursue higher education in various institutions, universities, and others.

Brokenshire was joined by the mayor of the West Midlands Andy Street and chair of the Midlands Engine partnership Sir John Peace.