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Visit of Hon. Anand Sharma, Minister of Commerce, Industry & Textiles of India to Sri Lanka from 2-5 August, 2012

Hon. Anand Sharma, Minister of Commerce, Industry & Textiles of India will visit Sri Lanka from 2-5 August 2012 coinciding with the prestigious "India Show – Land of Limitless Opportunities" being organized by the Confederation of Indian Industry (CII) in partnership with the Ceylon Chamber of Commerce from 3-5 August, 2012 at BMICH, Colombo. The 'India Show' is supported by the Ministry of Commerce and Industry, Government of India , High Commission of India and India Brand Equity Foundation (IBEF). Hon. Minister will be accompanied by a high-powered official and business delegation.

The 'India Show' is being held in Colombo with the objective of promoting two-way flow of goods and services between Indian and Sri Lanka, providing a platform for Indian companies to showcase their strengths and capabilities, encouraging Indian investment in Sri Lanka as well as to provide opportunities to the Sri Lankan companies to build business partnerships with Indian companies.

The main features of the "India Show" are:

· A three day exhibition at BMICH, Colombo;
· Visit of Ministerial delegation;
· Visit of high level business delegation;
· Business Conference;
· One-to-one meetings;
· A Cultural Evening and a Gala Dinner.

Some of the key sectors represented at the exhibition are Infrastructure, Power, Mineral Fuels, Oil and Products, Electrical Machinery and Parts, Food products, Agro-processing, Mining Machinery, Railway Equipment, Rolling Stock , Paper, Paper Board and Paper Pulp, Handicrafts, Textiles and Garments, Information and Communications Technology and Financial Services.

Hon. Minister Anand Sharma will inaugurate "The India Show" on 3 August along with Hon. Basil Rajapaksa, Minister of Economic Development, Hon. Rishad Bathiudeen, Minister of Industry & Commerce and Hon. Sarath Amunugama, Senior Minister of International Monetary Cooperation on 3rd August. During the visit, Hon. Anand Sharma is scheduled to have bilateral meetings with a number of Sri Lankan dignitaries.

The "India Show" brings together over 105 companies from India for the exhibition. Two high-level business delegations from the Confederation of Indian Industry (CII) and the Federation of Indian Chambers of Commerce & Industry (FICCI) would be part of the delegation led by the Hon'ble Minister of Commerce, Industry & Textiles.

The 12-member CEOs delegation from the Confederation of Indian Industry (CII) is led by Mr. Rajive Kaul, Chairman, Nicco Corporation Ltd and includes Mr. R. Seshasayee, Executive Vice Chairman, Ashok Leyland, Mr. Chandrajit Banerjee, Director General, Confederation of Indian Industry, Mr. T. T. Ashok, Managing Director, Taylor Rubber Private Ltd. , Mr. Suneel M Advani, Executive Vice Chairman, Blue Star Ltd., Mr. S Abhaya Kumar, Managing Director, Shasun Pharmaceuticals Ltd., Sir Ganesan Natarajan, Wholetime Director & President , Ennore Coke Ltd. and Mr. K Ramchand, Managing Director, IL&FS Transportation Networks Ltd.

The inaugural meeting of the 'India-Sri Lanka CEOs Forum' will also be held in Colombo on 4 August, 2012. Mr. Sunil Bharti Mittal, Chairman & Managing Director, Bharti Airtel Ltd, will be leading the Indian delegation for the CEO's Forum. The other members of the Indian delegation are Mr. Vinod Desari, Managing Director, Ashok Leyland; Mr. Arup Roy Choudhury Chairman, National Thermal Power Corporation Ltd.; Mr. Tulsi Tanti, Chairman & Managing Director, Suzlon Energy Ltd.; Mrs. Jyotsna Suri, Chairperson, The Lalit Suri Hospitality Group; Mr. Hari Bhartia, Co-Chairman & Managing Director, Jubilant Life Sciences; Mr. Atul Punj, Chairman, Punj Lloyd; Mr. Hemant G. Contractor, Managing Director (IB), State Bank of India; Mr. Venu Srinivasan, Chairman & Managing Director TVS Motor Company, Mr. Veervijay Singh, Chief Operating Officer and Mr. S. Dakwale, Managing Director, Lanka Indian Oil Corporation.

India and Sri Lanka enjoy a growing and vibrant trade and investment engagement in the overall context of warm and friendly relations between the two countries. Bilateral trade has expanded by a multiple of eight since the Free Trade Agreement (FTA) was signed and reached approximately US$ 5 billion in FY 2011-12. Sri Lanka is India's largest trade partner in SAARC; India inturn is Sri Lanka's largest trade partner worldwide. Both countries have undertaken investments in each other and Indian companies have established a strong investment footprint in Sri Lanka with cumulative FDI approvals of over $700 million since 2003. Services trade, educational exchanges, infrastructure projects, tourism, and other sectors of economic cooperation too have expanded significantly. A number of developmental partnership projects for rehabilitation, reconstruction and human development undertaken by the Government of India in Sri Lanka have the involvement of Indian companies.

The visit of Hon. Anand Sharma, Minister of Commerce, Industry & Textiles to Sri Lanka from 2-5 August, 2012 in connection with the 'India Show', the launch of 'India-Sri Lanka CEOs Forum' will significantly contribute to a closer economic relationship between India and Sri Lanka.

Colombo