Prime Minister of India, Shri Narendra Modi meets Mr. Xi Jinping, President of China at East Lake in Wuhan, China

Vol: 4.4

April 23-29, 2018

CONSULATE GENERAL

OF

INDIA

TORONTO, CANADA www.cgitoronto.ca

Consul General Shri Dinesh Bhatia with Hon. Michael Chan,

Minister of International Trade, Ontario at the Canada-India

Partnership Summit

Consul General Shri Dinesh Bhatia with Padma Bhushan, Dr. Laxmi

Prasad Yarlagadda at the inauguration of the International Hindi

Literary Conference, 2018

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Updates from Consulate General of India, Toronto

Canada-India Partnership Summit, Toronto

Canada-India Partnership Summit took place on 26 April, 2018 at BMO Financial Group, First Canadian Place, Toronto. The summit was organised by Canada-India Business Council (CIBC) with the support of BMO, Air Canada, ICICI Bank, Government of Ontario and Seneca College. Consul General, Shri Dinesh Bhatia delivered the welcome remarks and summed up the long-standing India-Canada partnership in 3Cs which are the Contrasts, Commonalities and Complementarities between the two countries. He emphasized on four ways to harness this relationship further. The event also included panel discussions on 5 topics. The Panelists of the Panel Discussion on ‘Role of Creative Industries in a Globalised World’ included Mr. Vikas Swarup, High Commissioner of India to Canada and Mr. Sanjoy Roy, Managing Director, Teamwork Arts. Both the panelists shared their global experiences of the influence of Indian Arts & Culture in various countries.

Consul General Shri Dinesh Bhatia addressing the audience at Canada-India Partnership Summit High Commissioner Shri Vikas Swarup

speaking in a Panel Discussion at Canada-India Partnership Summit

Consul General Shri Dinesh Bhatia with Hon. Michael Chan, Minister of International Trade, Ontario at the Canada-India Partnership Summit

Consul General Shri Dinesh Bhatia addressing the

audience at Canada-India Partnership Summit

Visit of Satguru Mata Savinder Hardev Ji, Head of Sant Nirankari Mission Congregation to Toronto

Consul General, Shri Dinesh Bhatia welcomed Satguru Mata Savinder Hardev Ji and got her blessings during her maiden visit to Toronto on April 29, 2018 after taking over as the Head of Sant Nirankari Mission. He also addressed a packed hall of about five thousand devotees of the Sant Nirankari Mission at the Congregation in Toronto.

International Hindi Literary Conference 2018

Participation of CGI Toronto in Community Events

Mr. Davinder Pal Singh, Consul (Press, Information & Community Welfare) participated in the HIM Day (Himachal cultural) celebrations, organized by Himachal Cultural Association of Canada on April 28, 2018. The celebration was packed with Himachali folk and dance ensemble, namely Naati Gidda and many such programmes.

Updates from Consulate General of India, Toronto

Consul General Shri Dinesh Bhatia with Padma Bhushan, Dr. Laxmi Prasad

Yarlagadda and other participants at International Hindi Literary Conference

Consul General Shri Dinesh Bhatia

addressing the audience Consul General Shri Dinesh Bhatia with Padma Bhushan, Dr. Laxmi Prasad

Yarlagadda releasing a book at the Conference

Audience at the International Hindi Literary Conference Shri N P Singh, Consul (Consular, Passport & Visa) at the Prize Distribution Ceremony of the

International Hindi Literary Conference

Vishva Hindi Sansthan Cultural Organisation, Canada, conducted an International Hindi Literacy Conference, 2018, Canada in Brampton, Toronto, Canada from April 26-30, 2018. Consul General Shri Dinesh Bhatia inaugurated the "International Hindi Literary Conference, 2018" in Toronto. In his inaugural speech, Consul General, Mr. Dinesh Bhatia, welcomed 30 Scholars arrived from different countries viz India, USA and Mauritius to participate in the event. He said that national language plays an important role in the progress and maintaining the integrity of any nation. He also pointed out that, the number of Indian speaking Hindi has increased by many folds if compared to that in 1990s. Consul General also released a number of Hindi books on the occasion. The event was organised to encourage Canadian youth for usage of Hindi language in their day to day life and it included competitions on Essay writing with title “ और ”and Poetry. Dr. Laxmi Prasad Yarlgadda, Padam Vibhushan awardee

and Mr. Vinod kumar Mishra, Security General of World Hindi Secretariat also participated in the event. Mr. N.P. Singh, (Consular, Passport & Visa) CGI, Toronto, distributed the prizes to the participants on April 29, 2018 and appreciated this initiative for propagation of Hindi in Canada. Over 100 participants attended the conference.

Mr. Hoti Lal, Consul, OCI, Consulate General of India participated in the Ugadi celebrations organised by Kannada Sangha in Toronto on April 21, 2018. Large number of community members attended the celebrations and were enthralled by the cultural performances.

Updates from India

News Updates from India

Canada's pension fund CDPQ bets big on India story with US$ 4.5 bn investment http://www.business-standard.com/article/specials/canada-s-pension-fund-cdpq-bets-big-on-india-story-with-4-5-bn-investment-118042600038_1.html Caisse de depot et placement du Quebec (CDPQ) has identified India as one of its key growth markets and made US$ 4.5 billion worth of investments in the country since April 2016. Founded in 1965, CDPQ manages at least $298 billion of assets globally. India's average GDP growth to rise to 7.8 pc in first half of this year http://www.ptinews.com/news/9671487__India-s-average-GDP-growth-to-rise-to-7-8-pc-in-first-half-of-this-yr--Report$storyes Indian economy is expected to witness a cyclical recovery driven by investments as well as consumption, and the average GDP growth is expected to rise to 7.8 per cent in the first half of this year, says a report. According to the Japanese financial services major Nomura, investment and consumption demand are the main drivers for India's growth, amid worsening net exports.

*News Reports included in this Newsletter have been sourced from third party websites/portals. Consulate General of India, Toronto does not modify/alter their content in any manner

India-China Informal Summit at Wuhan

Prime Minister of India, H.E. Shri Narendra Modi and President of People's Republic of China, H.E. Mr. Xi Jinping held their first Informal Summit in Wuhan on April 27-28, 2018, to exchange views on overarching issues of bilateral and global importance, and to elaborate their respective visions and priorities for national development in the context of the current and future international situation. The two leaders highly assessed the opportunity for direct, free and candid exchange of views offered by the Informal Summit and agreed on the utility of holding more such dialogues in the future. The forward-looking dialogue raised the level of strategic communication about the perspective, priorities and vision that guide their respective policy choices domestically, regionally and globally. It also helped them in forging a common understanding of the future direction of India-China relations built upon mutual respect for each other's developmental aspirations and prudent management of differences with mutual sensitivity.

Know Your India Programme

Know India Programme of the Ministry of External Affairs is a three-week orientation programme for diaspora youth conducted with a view to promote awareness on different facets of life in India and the progress made by the country in various fields e.g. economic, industrial, education, science & technology, communication & information Technology, culture.

Pravasi Bhartiya Divas 2019

Ministry of External affairs, India, organizes “The Pravasi Bharatiya Divas” (PBD), in order to have a meaningful dialogue and mutually beneficial engagement between India and its Diaspora. In reverence to the sentiments of the larger diaspora community to participate in Kumbh Snan and their desires to witness the Republic Day Parade, the 15th PBD Convention, 2019 will be held from January 21-23, 2019 in Varanasi, Uttar Pradesh, in association with the State Government of Uttar Pradesh. The theme of the 15th Pravasi Bharatiya Divas (PBD) Convention, 2019 is “Role of Indian Diaspora in building a New India”. Members of Indian Diaspora interested to participate in the above PBD Convention, 2019 may visit the website and register their names on www.pbdindia.gov.in/how-register.