Staff reporter / NEW DELHI
Prime Minister Narendra Modi will embark on a seven-day visit to United States tonight. During his visit, Mr. Modi will be in Houston and New York and address the United Nations General Assembly on September 27th.
Briefing media persons here, Foreign Secretary Vijay Gokhale said, the Prime Minister will address Indian community on 22nd of this month and President Donald Trump will also be there. On 24th September, India will organize an event to commemorate the 150th Birth Anniversary of Mahatma Gandhi in the UN. Mr. Modi will be joined by heads of some countries including President of South Korea, Prime Ministers of Singapore, New Zealand, Bangladesh and Jamaica as well as the UN Secretary General.
During the visit, Mr. Modi will also be honoured with Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation’s Global Goalkeeper’s Award for his leadership in field of sanitation through Swachh Bharat Abhiyan.
As Prime Minister Narendera Modi sets out on his weeklong visit to USA, focus is on expanding India-US trade, of which Houston is an important partner. Indo-American chamber of Greater Houston has said that PM Modi’s visit would give a boost to trade ties between the two countries & encourage investment in India. A non-stop flight from Houston to Delhi is one of the expectations. AIR correspondent reports that India is the fourth largest trading partner of Houston after Brazil, China and Mexico.
Houston- India trade has gone up by 82.2 per cent this year. The total trade volume was worth $7.2 billion in 2018. In addition, Houston Customs District is the third busiest gateway for US-India trade by sea and air. 33 Houston-based firms have 85 branches and subsidiaries across India. 28 Indian firms have as many branches and subsidiaries in Houston. With an ongoing trade war between US & China, India’s vast market & energy needs, the Indian American business community has high hopes that the Modi-Trump joint address can very well be the catalyst for the two economies.