Poland on Thursday reassured Vice President M Hamid Ansari of its support to India’s permanent membership at the expanded United Nations Security Council and the Nuclear Suppliers Group. Speaking to media after the delegation level talks between the Polish Prime Minister Beata Szydlo, Ansari said Poland also backs India on the early adoption of Comprehensive Convention on International Terrorism (CCIT) at the United Nations.
Following the talks between the two sides, India and Poland signed an agreement on the exchange of information, research, and technology in the field of agriculture. The agreement, signed by Minister of State of Small Industries Giriraj Singh and Polish Minister for Agriculture Krzystof Jurgiel also envisages formation of a special Joint Working Group to oversee this cooperation.
Sources said a number of high level agriculture focused delegations have been exchanged between India and Poland in recent times, resulting in ‘several positive outcomes’ like the signing of a memorandum of understanding between major producers of dairy farming products — Bakoma of Poland and Amul of India. Some joint ventures between food processing companies on both sides are in the pipeline, such as the one proposed between DMD Agro of India and Amplus of Poland, to bring Polish technologies to India’s mega food parks. Polish apples are poised to enter the Indian market in a big way, as the Indian Government favourably revised the phytosanitary conditions pertaining to their import. India has also begun exporting fruit mangoes and grapes to Poland. Besides, the two sides agreed to explore possibilities for cooperation in the areas of food processing, solar energy, clean coal, treatment of waste water and solid waste management.
The Vice President added that as part of cultural cooperation Indian festivals will be celebrated in various cities of Poland. Besides, during their discussions Poland and India agreed to work on regional and international issues of common interest.
later at a Business Summit Ansari invited Polish companies to invest in India as and when they explore markets and business opportunities beyond Europe. The Summit was organised by Poland’s Ministry of Economic Development and attended by nearly 150 businessmen and companies from the two countries.
The Vice President said that India’s 29 States now offer a climate of both cooperative and competitive federalism, with quantum improvements in investment conditions in different Indian States. The new policy initiatives taken by the Union Government, such as Make in India, Skill India and Digital India schemes, present new business opportunities for Polish companies in areas such as defence, food processing, coal and mining, healthcare, pharmaceuticals, bio-technology and renewable energy. He informed about the new taxation regime and other benefits India is offering for the ease of doing business.
Poland is India’s largest economic partner in Central Europe with bilateral trade around $2.8 billion in 2016. “The constant reforms in fiscal and investment facilitation policies are transforming the economic scenario in India. A landmark Goods and Services Tax reform, for instance, is aimed at making India a unified market, with all 29 States offering an identical and predictable tax environment. Increasing transparency and a liberalised investment climate now allows the smooth flow of FDI in sectors like defence, railways, civil aviation and pharmaceuticals. We have seen a strong global confidence in the India story, with a surge in Foreign Direct Investments, which reached over $50 billion in 2016,” Ansari said.