Minister of State for Commerce and Industry Ashwini Kumar on Tuesday invoked President Dwight Eisenhower to drive home the point that democracies like India and the United States sharing common values must 'complement and supplement' each other and develop a stronger bond among themselves.
"I think the time has come for all of us to heed the advice of President Eisenhower that countries that share a basic love of freedom, tolerance and liberty must trust each other more and must help each other more," Kumar said, addressing over 250 leading business tycoon from the Tri-state area that is home to more than 100 Fortune 500 companies.
The occasion was the 35th annual New Jersey World Trade Conference that was dedicated to India for the first time in history of the non-profit body, which is broadly supported by the New Jersey business community.
The daylong 'India Day' conference at Birchwood Manor, New Jersey, was organised in collaboration with the Consulate General of India, New York, as part of the 'International Trade Week' proclaimed annually by the President of the United States.
Kumar, who delivered the luncheon keynote address noted that the Prime Minister's Office recognised the importance of the Tri-state area not only as home to nearly 100 Fortune 500 companies but also as the region having the largest concentration of skilled and resourceful Indian Americans.
"There are many reasons why the Prime Minister's Office attaches so much importance to this event. We know what opportunities exist (here) for the Indian sunrise and hi-tech industries,' Kumar said, suggesting the reason for his trip from all the way in New Delhi.
Consul General Neelam Deo explained these reasons earlier while making the inaugural remarks at the conference. "His (Kumar's) odyssey from another part of the world to New Jersey testifies to our special linkages with the state that has important industries like petroleum-based products, chemicals, fertilizers, insurance and finance," Deo said.
She said that apart from agriculture and food processing, the other promising areas for India-New Jersey cooperation and investment include tourism, pharmaceutical, biotechnology industries as well as nano-technology.
"We also need to explore investment opportunities in manufacture of healthcare related devices. New Jersey is ideally placed to take the lead with its exceptionally competent medical services, teaching hospitals and also as an important hub for the manufacture of pharmaceuticals,' she said.
The day-long event that focused on trade, tourism, and investment, had presentations and panel discussions involving experts from the industry as well as senior officials from the Government of New Jersey and from the Federal Ministry of Commerce, Washington DC, Federation of Indian Chamber of Commerce and Industry and the Confederation of Indian Industry.
"We will all agree that the ripe is ripe. US-India relations from all perspective is of huge importance of going forward and anything we can do to move that forward is time well spent," said John D McCahill, chairman of the conference and president of the American Market Access LLS in his welcoming remarks.
Both New Jersey Governor Corzine and Ambassador Ronen Sen, who were to address the gathering, could not make it to the event due to unavoidable engagements.
