Indian businesses, education community hope to get new dimension of ties during PM’s UAE visit

The Indian business community in the UAE is very positive about the upcoming visit.

People from industry and academia are seeing a new peak and possibilities with this visit.

Abu Dhabi, July 13 (IANS) Indian businesses and the education community in the United Arab Emirates (UAE) hope to get a new dimension of relations during Prime Minister Narendra Modi's upcoming visit this week.

Modi will arrive in Abu Dhabi on Saturday after wrapping up his two-day trip to France.

During the visit, he will hold talks with His Highness Sheikh Mohamed bin Zayed Al Nahyan, President of the UAE and Ruler of Abu Dhabi.

The India-UAE Comprehensive Strategic Partnership continues to and the Prime Minister's visit will be an opportunity to recognise opportunities to take it forward in various sectors such as energy, education, healthcare, food security, fintech, defense, and culture.

The meeting will also discuss cooperation on global issues, especially in the context of the UAE's Presidency of COP and India's G20 Presidency, of which the UAE is a special invitee.

Prime Minister Modi will return to India from the UAE on the same day.

This will be his fifth visit to the UAE, after the four previous visits in 2015, 2018, 2019, and 2022.

The preparations for the IIT Abu Dhabi campus, which will start its first session from September 2024, are in full swing and the education world is hopeful that Modi will inquire about the progress.

This campus is starting with the partnership of IIT Delhi and the Department of Education and Knowledge -- Abu Dhabi.

If current plans go as per schedule, the IIT Delhi's Abu Dhabi campus will start its operations in 2024.

The first batch of students will start their academic session in September of the same year and this will be IIT's first campus outside the country.

As per the plan, in the initial sessions, the IIT Delhi faculty will look after the quality and content on campus, while students will be selected through the IIT-JEE test.

Deepika Thapar Singh, Principal, and CEO of a CBSE school in Dubai, said: “This is an important moment for Indians, especially those living in the UAE. We have a large Indian community in the Gulf, many of whom consider returning to India after completing Class 12 to pursue further studies at prestigious Indian institutions, especially the IITs.

"Students will now have the option to stay in the Gulf and continue their studies at this prestigious institution that is sure to cater to their unique cultural, educational, and social needs. This will make studying a more comfortable and fulfilling experience. IIT degrees are recognised and respected in their country and globally, potentially leading to better job opportunities for these students."

On the other hand, the business world has also high hopes for visit.

After the huge success of CEPA and the huge boom in India-UAE trade relations, now the business world is hopeful that Modi can talk meaningfully about the prevalence of the Indian payment system RuPay with this visit.

Although RuPay was launched during PM Modi's visit in 2019, practically in the market, it is far behind Visa and MasterCard in the international market.

The UAE was the first country in the Gulf to launch RuPay and with the launch, 21 UAE companies have pledged to join the RuPay network.

UAE banks such as Emirates NBD, Abu Dhabi Bank, and Bank of Baroda are also part of the RuPay network.

Bharat Bhatia, Chairman & CEO, of Conares Steel, says:“Once again, we are very excited to hear the news that Prime Minister Narendra Modi is visiting UAE on July 15. We already have very good relations and his coming is very encouraging for Indian people.

"As a merchant, we would like to increase the usage of RuPay. Now I am hearing that RuPay is becoming more and more popular all over the world. is happening. We can try to facilitate this only if