President Kovind lauds Indian community in Netherlands for being bridge with Europe

The Indian community is an important pillar in India-Netherlands growing bilateral relations and also serves as a bridge not only between the two countries but also between India and Europe, President Ram Nath Kovind said.

While addressing the members of the Indian community and 'Friends of India' at the Indian community reception in Amsterdam on Wednesday, President said, "The Indian community is the most important pillar of growing India-Netherlands bilateral relations and serves as a bridge between not just India and Netherlands, but between India and Europe also."

The reception was organised by the Ambassador of India to the Netherlands, Reenat Sandhu.

On the 75th anniversary of diplomatic relations, President Kovind said, "My state visit to the Netherlands marks an important milestone as we celebrate the 75th anniversary of the establishment of the diplomatic relations between India and the Netherlands this year."

He also stated that India and the Netherlands are long-standing partners with historical ties of friendship and collaboration. In the 75 years of our diplomatic ties, we have worked together in wide-ranging areas of mutual interest, President added.

President Kovind also stated that the Indian community in the Netherlands is the largest Indian origin diaspora in mainland Europe with over 200,000 members of the Hindustani-Surinami community. And over 60,000 Indian students and professionals are residing in the Netherlands, he added.

"The President noted that Indian professionals in the Netherlands have done extremely well. As entrepreneurs, doctors, bankers and technology experts, they are adding immense value to the Dutch society and economy as well as the global community at large. He said that India is proud of their achievements and their success," the Rashtrapati Bhavan said in a statement.

According to the official statement, the President said that one cannot take India out of an Indian. He further said that Indians always keep their civilizational values alive in whichever part of the world they live in.

"In the past few years, our engagement with and outreach to the Indian diaspora has grown manifold. We have taken several initiatives under the maxim of 4Cs - Care, Connect, Celebrate and Contribute. The Overseas Citizen of India cards have been issued to give status and privileges in many areas," the statement read.

"Travel to India has been facilitated through the issuance of long-term visas and E-visa. To increase the participation of the diaspora and familiarize them with their Indian roots, we started the scholarship programme for the children of Indian origins' parents to join Indian universities for higher education. He urged the members of the Indian community to avail the benefits of the initiative," the statement added.

The President said that India is full of opportunities for business, social enterprises and for cultural connections. He invited the Indian community members to join in India's transformational journey. He also told them that they can contribute with their ideas, business models and investment profiles.

He said that over the past seven and a half decades, the bilateral trade and investments between the two countries have grown remarkably. He also said that Netherland became the third-largest investor in India.

"The Netherlands is now the third-largest investor in India. Likewise, India is also emerging as one of the top investors in the Netherlands. The Netherlands is a pioneer in water management and scientific know-how. Both sides are closely working together to implement several joint projects in this sector. Agriculture, health, port and shipping, science and technology, higher education and urban development have been identified as other priority areas of cooperation," the statement read.

"The President said that we count on the Netherlands as a key partner in our national flagship programmes - Make in India, Skill India, Clean India and Digital India. We are keen to leverage Dutch technology, know-how and investment for growth and development in India and the Indian community can play an important part in achieving these objectives," the statement added.

The President will board the plane on Thursday for New Delhi after finishing his official visit to Turkmenistan and the Netherlands.

( With inputs from ANI )