Indian Minister of State (MoS) for External Affairs and Parliamentary Affairs V Muraleedharan will pay an official visit to Qatar from Sunday until May 10, the Indian embassy in Doha has announced.
This will be Muraleedharan's first official visit to Qatar, the Indian Ministry of External Affairs said in a press statement. During the visit, the MoS will hold discussions with HE Hassan bin Abdullah al-Ghanim, Speaker of the Shura Council; HE Sultan bin Saad al-Muraikhi, Minister of State for Foreign Affairs; and other Qatari dignitaries, the statement noted.
Muraleedharan will also meet a wide cross-section of the Indian community in Qatar, including those working in areas of community welfare, business, health, culture, education, engineering, accountancy and Indian veterans. He will also be participating in Labour Day celebrations with blue-collar workers from India.
The Indian community will host a reception and a cultural event to mark Azadi ka Amrit Mahotsav during the visit of the MoS.
"The visit of the Minister of State for External Affairs would add to the momentum of the multifaceted bilateral co-operation. Both countries share excellent bilateral relations ranging across - political, economic, defence, cultural and educational fields, which have further strengthened in the past few years. The leadership of both countries has maintained close contact during the Covid-19 pandemic," the statement continued. "Qatar is home to over 700,000 Indians. The bilateral trade crossed $15bn in FY 2021-22 and Qatar’s investments into India have increased five folds over the past two years. Both countries will be celebrating the golden jubilee of the establishment of full diplomatic relations in 2023."
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