India-Singapore to elevate ties to strategic level

India plans to elevate its relations with Singapore to the strategic level by signing an agreement to this effect even as the island nation plans to showcase its strides in urban planning and skill development during Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s forthcoming visit.

Modi will visit the city-state – which is celebrating its 50th year of independence – on November 23 and 24 and is likely to deliver two addresses there. One address will be at an economic convention comprising top business leaders from both countries and the other, a San Jose-type address to the Indian community at the Singapore Expo stadium, which has a capacity of 17,000. Indian officials denied reports that the Singapore government was restricting entry of its citizens of Indian origin from attending the stadium address.

The two countries have strong, traditional ties. Ethnic Indians there number around four lakh or nearly 10 per cent of the country’s total population. About 70 per cent of the community is of Tamil origin and Tamil is one of the four official languages there.

The two countries have major trade ties – Singapore is India’s 10th largest trading partner. It accounted for second largest source of FDI amounting to $31.9 billion during 2000-2015 which is 13 per cent of India’s FDI flow. Singapore was the largest source of FDI into India for 2013-14 overtaking Mauritius. India is the 12th largest trade partner of the global commerce, financial and transportation hub. It is also India’s second largest trade partner among ASEAN countries accounting for 25.9 per cent of New Delhi’s trade with the group.

Singapore is increasing its ties with India steadily. A senior Indian official explained to a group of visiting Indian journalists: “The two countries have identified five thrust areas – increasing investment and trade, speeding up air and maritime connectivity, smart city development and urban rejuvenation, skills development and capacity bui-lding and engagement with states to stre-ngthen business and cultural links. In the recent past, four chief ministers visited Singapore and their Maharashtra and Madhya Pradesh counterparts are coming shortly”.

Discussion between the two countries are at an advanced stage now that Modi will be visiting. He is likely to visit the Institute of Technical Education (ITE), billed as a premier global centre that provides pre-employment training to secondary school dropouts and continuing education and training to working adults.

The ITE, which already has a tie-up with Delhi and Rajasthan governments, the latter in the field of tourism, wants to extend its partnership with other states.

Water and waste management is another area where the tiny country of 5.5 million people wants to have a closer cooperation. The two countries have already signed a defence treaty. Singapore occupies a key place in India’s Look East and Act East polices because of its strategic location on the major sea route between India and China.

Intense dialogue
The Indian High Commission wants Modi to visit the Indian Heritage Centre, an institution which traces the history of the Indian South Asian community in Singapore and is a platform to learn more about the diverse Indian heritage in the island country. However, unlike his ITE visit, this has not been finalised.

Singapore is keen that the master plan that its Centre for Liveable Cities (CLC) prepared for Amaravati, the new capital of Andhra Pradesh, would propel other states to approach it. It is the CLC, under the guidance of the Urban Redevelopment Authority, which scripted the transformation of Singapore of the old to the present day global city with world-class amenities and immaculate planning.

Said an official of the Singapore Ministry of Foreign Affairs: “Both countries are enga-ged in a serious dialogue. The extent of enga-gement in capacity building, huge amount of people coming to Singapore for training, be it officials, students etc is an indication of this. You can’t have MoU for everything. Things can happen without that”.

He added: “The focus will be on economic and strategic cooperation. We have intense dialogue going on. We hope to take it to a higher level, make the two countries strategic partners. We will formalise it during Prime Minister Modi’s visit. There will be a host of other issues we are still working on.” Singapore Foreign Minister Vivian Balakrishnan had said recently: “The strategic partnership will come with deliverables and concrete outcomes with focus on urban solutions, smart cities and knowledge and skill transfer”.

Several states at present have tie ups with Singapore’s business organisations. The Changi Airports International is jointly developing the S$125 million airport in Durgapur, West Bengal. Its PSA International, which operates three container terminals – in Kolkata, Chennai and Tuticorin – has signed a concession agreement with the Jawaharlal Nehru Port Trust to build a S$1.7 billion container loading facility in Mumbai.

Sembcorp is involved in two 1,320 mw coal-fired power projects in Andhra Pradesh worth over US$3 billion. Ascendas is developing science, business and IT parks in several cities, including Bengaluru and Gurgaon. Jurong Group has several business tie-ups in different states. While Jurong International and Surbana International Consultants provided the master plan for Amaravati, they are deeply involved in consultancy projects across India such as designing an electronics city for the Karnataka Biotechnology and Information Technology Services, and a 100-acre BT park for the Mayar Group in Gurgaon.

The company has conducted feasibility studies for the Manesar-Bawal investment region in Haryana as part of the Delhi-Mumbai Industrial Corridor and for the development of a petrochemical park in Nayachar Island in West Bengal.