ESM Goh on official visit to India

SINGAPORE - Emeritus Senior Minister Goh Chok Tong will be visiting India from today to Thursday to reaffirm the close bilateral ties between Singapore and India, wrote the Ministry of Foreign Affairs in a statement today.

Mr Goh will be accompanied by Second Minister for Home Affairs and Trade and Industry, S Iswaran, and Minister of State for National Development Desmond Lee.

While in New Delhi, Mr Goh will call on Prime Minister Narendra Modi and meet with the finance minister Arun Jaitley and urban development minister Venkaiah Naidu.

Mr Goh will also meet Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) President Amit Shah, as well as top industry leaders and opinion makers. He will also be calling on long-time friends former prime minister Manmohan Singh, Congress President Sonia Gandhi and Senior BJP leader L K Advani.

Mr Iswaran will meet some leaders and counterparts, including the civil aviation minister, energy minister, and commerce and finance minister.

In Hyderabad, Mr Goh will meet several top business leaders who are based there, and chief ministers of the state of Andhra Pradesh and Telangana, and in Bhopal, Mr Goh's delegation will be hosted to an official lunch.

Mr Goh is accompanied by senior officials from the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, Ministry of Trade and Industry, and the Urban Redevelopment Authority.

klim@sph.com.sg