Today's Edition
A SREENIVASA REDDY (ABU DHABI)
Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi paid glowing tributes to the growing UAE-India relationship in his nearly 40-minute-long speech to tens of thousands of Indian expats who gathered at the Ahlan Modi event in Abu Dhabi.
Just after meeting President His Highness Sheikh Mohamed bin Zayed Al Nahyan and witnessing the signing of a series of agreements, he arrived at the meeting venue — Zayed Sports City Stadium — to the cheers of fervent expats. The Indian Prime Minister was accompanied by His Excellency Sheikh Nahyan bin Mubarak Al Nahyan, the UAE Minister of Tolerance.
Ahlan Modi is the name of the community reception event where the Indian Prime Minister met with Indian expatriates living the UAE. This type of community receptions have been held in several countries where the Indian leader interacted with his countrymen living there.
The Indian Prime Minister began his speech with a slogan – the UAE-Indian friendship zindabad (Long Live) — which the audience repeated several times.
He recalled how his engagement with the UAE began in 2015 when he first visited the country, the first visit by an Indian Prime Minister in over 30 years. He recalled how at the time, President His Highness Sheikh Mohamed bin Zayed arrived at the airport to receive him with five of his brothers. "The warmth and sparkle in the UAE leaders’ eyes on that day, I can never forget,” Modi said. “On that day I thought I arrived to the home of a close family”, the Indian PM added. He said the same warm reception was accorded when he arrived in the UAE on Tuesday, on his seventh visit to the country.
The Prime Minister praised the UAE President during his address, who, he said, played an instrumental role in taking forward the relationship. He recalled one incident during the COVID-19 pandemic where the UAE President dissuaded him from his plan to evacuate Indians from the UAE, as His Highness assured him that the UAE would take excellent care of the Indian expatriates with vaccinations and other health measures. Modi also said he had the fortune to welcome the UAE President to India four times, recalling the recent Ahmedabad road show where crowds lined up to welcome him.
He also paid tribute to UAE astronaut Sultan AlNeyadi who had spent six months in the International Space Station. He said the UAE astronaut had gone out of his way to celebrate Indian Independence Day and Yoga Day in space.
Modi also noted the UAE is third biggest trading partner and seventh largest investor, attesting to the strong economic foundations of the growing relationship.
The Indian Prime Minister also tried his hand at speaking the Arabic language, choosing to say that the UAE and India together are writing a new chapter in the world’s history. As the crowd cheered him on over his valiant attempt to speak Arabic, Modi said that he had found several common words between Indian languages and Arabic, attesting to historical civilisational links.
Recognising the presence of several students in the audience, the Prime Minister recalled the decision to set up the Indian Institute of Technology (Delhi) branch in the UAE and the plans to open an office of the Central Board of Secondary Education (CBSE) in Dubai.
Towards the end of his speech, the Indian Prime Minister focused on domestic issues, and cited a series of measures taken by his government that helped underprivileged people stand on their own.
Announcing other important news, the Indian Prime Minister said the UPI ID system will come to the UAE, after which expats can seamlessly transfer money from their accounts here to India. Several important things are happening in the UAE-India relations because of the strategic relationship forged over the years, Modi added.
The Indian Prime Minister concluded the speech by saying that India will do whatever it takes to protect Indians living abroad,and recalled several instances where India evacuated its citizens in emergency situations. Following the address, Modi went around the stadium in an open car, greeting expats in the stands.
The Ahlan Modi event was preceded by day-long cultural programmes, where expats erupted into spontaneous song and dance as live performances were being staged, heightening the enthusiasm of the gathering. A R Rahman’s song “Vandemataram” particularly fired up the audience.
The atmosphere at the stadium was electric with thousands making it to the meeting despite predictions of unstable weather. But fortunately, skies in Abu Dhabi cleared up on Tuesday morning, making it easy for organisers and attendants.
Expats also went out of their way to ensure their presence at the event, with many expats, for whom it is a working day, taking a day off to attend. Balakrishna, an IT engineer, said that he did not want to miss the chance to attend a live event addressed by Modi. Another expatriate, Prithvi, who came with his family, said that he also took a break from duties to see the Prime Minister.
