Offering immediate investment opportunities worth a trillion dollars to investors in the United Arab Emirates or UAE, Prime Minister Narendra Modi today told them, “I inherited problems of indecision, lethargy from the previous government, but I am working to fix that”.
Predictably, the Congress bashing drew quick protest from its leaders.
“The Prime Minister has inherited an India that he should be proud of,” said Anand Sharma of the Congress. “The PM should be cautious of the dignity of his office,” he advised, suggesting that it is poor form to take potshots at political rivals on foreign tours.
“He has done it again,” the politician said, pointing out that the PM has in earlier trips been critical of the administration that preceded his.
The PM is on a two-day visit to the UAE, the first trip by an Indian Prime Minister to the region in over 34 years. In response to complaints of slow clearances and red tape, the PM assured, “I will send my Commerce Minister to try and find solutions to the problems faced by some UAE investors.”
To a conference of industry leaders, Modi said that India’s potential in tourism remains untapped. “You have managed to persuade the world to come visit your desert,” he said, “India wants the world at its doorstep as well.”
Tonight, the PM will address a cricket stadium packed with 50,000 Indians in Dubai. Thousands others will watch his speech on large screens installed outside. Thousands other will listen to his address live in radio sets.
