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Letter from Consul General, Anurag Bhushan

In 2014, the world witnessed the largest democratic event in history, as the 1.2-billion strong country elected their new government on a scale that amazed the entire world.

Consul General, Anurag Bhushan

On the occasion of the 66th anniversary of India’s Republic Day, I would like to convey to all my fellow Indians in the UAE my best wishes and warm greetings. It is indeed a matter of great pride that the wisdom and foresightedness of the founding fathers of our Constitution 66 years ago has given us a book that has not only stood the test of time but is seen all over the world as one of the finest models of Constitution.

As we celebrate India’s 66th Republic Day and enter a new year of hopes and promises, it is worthwhile to look back at the year gone by and take pride in our accomplishments and achievements as a nation. In 2014, the world witnessed the largest democratic event in history, as the 1.2-billion strong country elected their new government on a scale that amazed the entire world. As many as 554 million of 834 million registered voters exercised their franchise at 931,986 polling booths on 1.8 million electronic voting machines (EVMs). In sheer size, the Indian electorate is bigger than the combined voter population of each continent. In fact, it is like 90 countries rolled into one, not just in terms of numbers alone but the complexities as well. The sheer size and scale of the elections are a testament to our victory as a “secular, democratic, republic” that was envisaged in our Constitution. After many years, the people of India gave a clear mandate to form a stable government at the centre. The new government has launched various programmes including the ‘Make in India’ campaign that seeks to make India a developed nation through all-inclusive growth, technology, innovation, good governance and people’s participation. The policies of the new government have already started yielding positive results. OECD forecasts India as the only country among top economies to increase its pace of growth. According to IMF, India will be the second fastest growing economy soon.

Another major achievement of last year was in the health sector, when India was certified as polio-free by the World Health Organisation (WHO) after three years without an endemic case of polio. The battle against polio was a long-drawn and difficult one but due to the efforts of the Government of India, with the support of the World Bank, UNICEF, WHO and civil society organisations and millions of volunteers, India was successfully able to eradicate polio.

Our list of achievements would be incomplete without mentioning the success of the Mars Orbiter Mission. India became the first country to enter the orbit of Mars in its maiden attempt marking a major milestone in the country’s space programme. This indigenous inter-planetary mission costed just $74 million, which comes to an incredible Rs7 per kilometre. The Mars Orbiter Mission (MOM) truly symbolises ‘Make in India’. ISRO has made us proud with their other achievements as well, such as the launch of five foreign satellites on PSLV-C28 and launch of India’s heaviest rocket to date GSLV-Mk III, propelling India’s ambitions for manned space missions. Speaking at the ‘Make in India’ workshop on December 29, 2014, Prime Minister Narendra Modi, called upon all sectors of manufacturing in India to take inspiration from the “space” sector, and the achievements of India’s space scientists.

The Consulate General of India, Dubai also had a fruitful year. “Make in India” campaign was launched at the Indian Consulate on September 25, 2014. For the first time, the Prime Minister’s address to the captains of industry and investors at Vigyan Bhawan in New Delhi was webcast live. More than 200 business leaders from the expatriate Indian community along with the Consul Generals of Japan and Bangladesh and other senior diplomats from the US, Oman, Kuwait, China, Indonesia and Italy, CEOs from local and foreign business houses, bankers, market analysts, academicians and members of think tanks attended the event.

India’s Minister of External Affairs and Overseas Indian Affairs Sushma Swaraj visited the UAE between November 10 and 11, 2014, on her first bilateral official visit to the UAE. The minister had meetings with Lt General Shaikh Saif bin Zayed Al Nahyan, Deputy Prime Minister and Interior Minister of the UAE and her host, Shaikh Abdullah bin Zayed Al Nahyan, Foreign Minister of the UAE. They discussed matters of mutual interest including bilateral relations and developments in the region and the international arena. The minister had also an interactive session in Abu Dhabi with select Emirati businesspersons and senior economic decision makers on furthering bilateral investments.

As a part of the public outreach programme, the Consulate started new initiatives, one of them being a 10-day spoken Sanskrit course, which was well received by the Indian nationals in the UAE. The Consulate also initiated a new “India Science and Culture Lecture Series” under which an eminent personality from science and culture field will be invited to deliver a lecture and interact with the students.

We have received tremendous cooperation from the Indian diaspora in the UAE in all our endeavours. I would like to take this opportunity to commend the excellent work that Indians in the UAE are doing by engaging in selfless service, be it helping the not-so-privileged sections of society or promoting Indian culture in the UAE.

I, on behalf of the Consulate General of India, Dubai, and the Government of India extend my best wishes to all the Indians in the UAE. I would also like to thank the Government of the UAE for their continued cooperation in strengthening India-UAE relations.