Former Prime Minister of India - Shri Atal Bihari Vajpayee

Prime Minister Shri Atal Bihari Vajpayee's speech at the civic reception at Male

Following is the text of the speech delivered by Prime Minister Shri Atal Bihari Vajpayee at the civic reception given in his honour at Male, today.

``I am honoured to be among you today and to receive the keys to this beautiful city of Male. I bring you the cordial greetings and best wishes of the people of India for the progress and prosperity of the fraternal people of this country.

This is my first visit to Maldives. I now understand why Marco Polo named these islands the ~Flower of the Indies~. And also why mariners through the centuries were irresistibly attracted to these sun-drenched islands, with their silver beaches, beautiful lagoons, and the famed hospitality of their people.

This charming city has a unique fusion of many cultures. I was happy to have the opportunity today of driving through the city and to see the Gold Dome and minaret of the Islamic Centre, the Presidential Palace and the Ali Rasgefaanu Ziyairaiy Memorial which are landmarks reflecting its diverse history and culture.

The affinities with India are also evident. Besides the modern landmarks of India-Maldives cooperation like the Indira Gandhi Memorial Hospital and the Institute of Technical Education, you have the Fenfushi mosque, which has been restored by a conservation organization from Lucknow – my parliamentary constituency in India. We have made the offer to similarly restore another historical mosque in Male.

I extend my warm greetings to the expatriate Indian community in this country. It is the largest expatriate community here. I am happy that – like your compatriots of the diaspora elsewhere – you are contributing to the economy of your country of domicile.

Friends,

India and Maldives are tied by bonds of history, geography and culture. We are close neighbours, in every sense of the term. India has always sought a constructive partnership with Maldives with the goal of mutual progress and prosperity. My discussions today with President Gayoom were held in this spirit and were very productive. We reviewed ongoing projects of our cooperation and identified new ones to harness the technologies of our age. I reaffirmed to President Gayoom India’s commitment to the economic development of Maldives.

All the countries of the world – big or small, poor or wealthy – are equally worthy of our respect. Each is a beautiful gem in Planet Earth’s open-air museum. Size is, therefore, not a factor in the India-Maldives relationship.

Among the new areas of our cooperation is the digital mapping and hydrographic surveys of the Maldivian land mass and coastlines. A team from our Department of Space, Survey of India and the Indian Navy’s Hydrographic Unit will carry out this work. We are also discussing the establishment of a remote sensing centre and a satellite telemedicine link between your health care centres and premier hospitals in India.

An Indian consultancy company is undertaking a unique project with your postal department to computerize the postal service network in this country. This is a new model of government-industry partnership, which can be duplicated to great effect in other developmental areas.

These projects are typical of the dynamic and forward-looking nature of our bilateral cooperation. We are constantly developing a contemporary dimension to our historical affinities.

In our cooperation with Maldives, we place particular emphasis on human resource development. You are a young nation with over half the population under the age of 30 and a literacy rate of nearly 100%. This translates into a workforce with energy, initiative and drive, which can be a powerful engine for economic growth and development.

India has been privileged to participate in the training of this human resource of great potential. We are constantly striving to increase the number of vacancies for Maldivian students in various specialized courses in India. For the next year, we have doubled the number of vacancies available for courses in India under our Technical Cooperation Programme, ITEC. We will also try to expand vacancies for Maldivian students in longer-term degree and diploma courses.

At the same time, we recognize the value of joint investment in capacity-building in Maldives itself. The Institute for Technical Education and the future Faculty for Hospitality and Tourism Studies would meet the growing demand in your economy for skilled manpower.

We would also be happy to depute to Maldives experts and trainers in other disciplines. President Gayoom mentioned to me today his vision for an IT Village in this country. India is more than willing to share its expertise with Maldives in this venture.

Friends,

A visitor to this beautiful country is struck by the fragility of its eco-system. We support President Gayoom’s untiring efforts to mobilize global cooperative efforts to tackle the causes of global warming. He has been pursuing this well before these issues acquired prominence at the Rio Earth Summit.

The earth’s atmosphere and biosphere know no national boundaries. We join hands with Maldives and other like-minded countries to demand effective global action against environmental degradation.

As with the environment, no island is immune from the problems of terrorism. A year ago, the reach and destruction of international terrorism showed itself on the global stage. Our region has suffered from the ravages of terrorism for decades before that. Both India and Maldives have committed themselves to join the war against international terrorism.

It is a global war calling for partnership primarily among democratic societies, which are most threatened by the bigoted ideologies that drive terrorism. India and Maldives have a cooperative role both in our region and on the global arena as democratic societies against international terrorism.

Friends,

I greatly value this opportunity to visit your country and, particularly, to share my views with you today on the broad horizons of the India-Maldives partnership. It is a partnership of unalloyed cordiality. My delegation and I will leave this country with the reassuring confidence that it retains its vibrancy and contemporary relevance.

Thank You’