Bengaluru 'hotspot' of new economy: Brazil envoy

Brazilian ambassador to India on Friday lauded Bengaluru as a "hotspot" of the new economy and sought more collaborations with the city's top educational institutions.

Inviting Indian students and faculty to work with its institutions, Andre Aranha Correa do Lago said they were in talks with the Indian Institute of Management Bengaluru (IIMB) for the same.

"Students at IIMB told us that they alreaIIMBdy have an agreement with the Fundação Getúlio Vargas (a higher education institution and think-tank in Brazil). We need to stimulate this kind of relationship," he said while speaking at an event to announce the opening of Honorary Consulate of Brazil in the city.

A meeting has also been scheduled with the deputy director of the Indian Institute of Science to explore possibilities of collaboration, he said, adding the number of students travelling from Brazil to India and the other way round was not very high.

On choosing Bengaluru for the consulate, the ambassador said, "New Delhi would look at the political dimension, Mumbai at traditional economic activities but Bengaluru and Hyderabad are the hotspots of the new economy. We sense that there are more opportunities."

He said Brazil was also looking at investments in energy transmission, pharmaceuticals, agriculture equipment from Indian companies.