KUWAIT: India's Minister of State for External Affairs and Parliamentary Affairs V Muraleedharan arrived in Kuwait yesterday on an official two-day visit. He was received at the Kuwait International Airport by Indian Ambassador Jeeva Sagar along with protocol officials from the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, Kuwait. Muraleedharan is making his maiden visit to Kuwait since he assumed office as the Minister of State for External Affairs in the second NDA government headed by Narendra Modi.
On the second day today, the minister is expected to meet His Highness the Crown Prince Sheikh Nawaf Al-Ahmad Al-Jaber Al-Sabah, Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of Foreign Affairs Sheikh Sabah Al-Khaled Al-Hamad Al-Sabah and the Minister of State for Economic Affairs Mariam Al-Aqeel. The minister visited NBTC Group premises and the workshop in Mina Abdullah and interacted with around 300 Indian workers. He also visited the female shelter of the Indian embassy and interacted with laborers.

Later in the evening, the minister attended a dinner reception that was hosted by the Indian Ambassador in honor of the visiting dignitary at Millennium Hotel, Salmiya. The minister also interacted with the Indian community members during the reception. The minister's visit is expected to further boost the deep-rooted bilateral relations between Kuwait and India.

The Indian expatriate community is the largest in Kuwait numbering over 900,000 currently. The minister is accompanied by Dr Nagendra Prasad, Joint Secretary (Gulf region), Ministry of External Affairs and his private secretary Nandakumar. The minister is set to wrap-up his two-day visit today afternoon.

By Sajeev K Peter