Prime Minister Ms Jacinda Ardern invites Prime Minister Narendra Modi to visit New Zealand

\

Jacinda Ardern, Prime Minister of New Zealand receiving the just released two books on Prime Minister Narendra Modi during Vishwa Sadbhawna event in the presence of India’s Minister for External Affairs Dr S Jaishankar and NID Foundation Patron Satnam Singh Sandhu at Auckland

Two Books ‘Heartfelt-The Legacy Of Faith’ and ‘Modi@20: Dreams Meet Delivery’ on PM Modi’s governance model internationally released at Auckland

Indian Diaspora hails PM Modi’s development model, farsighted policies for welfare of Indians across globe

“PM Narendra Modi turned India’s developmental journey into mass movement, has established India as a global superpower” : Dr S Jaishankar, Minister for External Affairs

AUCKLAND, New Zealand and CHANDIGARH, India, Oct. 7, 2022 /PRNewswire/ —

Ms Jacinda Ardern, Prime Minister of New Zealand has extended an invitation to  Narendra Modi, Prime Minister of India to visit New Zealand. She extended this invitation while participating in ‘Vishwa Sadbhavana’ event which was a part of the Kiwi Indian Hall of Fame awards, jointly organised by the NID Foundation and the Indian Weekender at Auckland in New Zealand, where two books depicting Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s unique and hugely successful governance were also unveiled, in the presence of Dr S Jaishankar, Minister for External Affairs.

In her address as the chief guest, Prime Minister Ms Jacinda Ardern said that New Zealand and India share a lot of things among them, and that the relationship between two countries has been growing stronger and there is a massive potential for the growth in the times to come.

“In a world that is becoming increasingly volatile, New Zealand and India share a lot of things. Both the nations care for our democratic traditions and share an interest in a peaceful and prosperous Indo-Pacific region. We share concerns for climate change and we have similar passions for celebrating different cultures and traditions. Engagements like today’s, not only deepen our relationship, but also progresses our aspirations,” said the Prime Minister, while inviting Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi to visit New Zealand.

“As New Zealand and India celebrate the 70th anniversary of formal diplomatic relations between the two countries, I am happy to note that our ties have been growing stronger than ever. The trade between the two countries continued despite the global challenges and I see a massive potential for the growth in coming times,” the Prime Minister said, adding that she discussed with Minister Jaishankar, a range of opportunities for partnerships between the two countries.

“I believe that the bridge between the two countries has been and will always be our people. Indians started living here in the 1890s and are New Zealand’s largest ethnic community today, constituting 5% of our population. No wonder, Hindi is the 5th most spoken language in New Zealand. The contribution of Indians to the progress of New Zealand has been commendable,” she said, and also released a special postal stamp issued by New Zealand Post to commemorate the 75 years of Indian Independence, along with Minister Jaishankar.

Other members of New Zealand cabinet including Nanaia Mahuta, New Zealand Foreign Minister, David Parker, Attorney-General, Minister of Revenue and Associate Minister of Finance; Jan Tinetti, Minister of Internal Affairs and Minister for Women; Minister Phil Twyford, Minister of State for Trade and Export Growth, Associate Minister for the Environment and Associate Minister of Immigration; Minister Priyanca Radhakrishnan, Minister for the Community and Voluntary Sector, Minister for Diversity, Inclusion and Ethnic Communities, and Associate Minister for Social Development & Employment; Michael Wood, Minister for Immigration & Transport, were also present on the occasion.

Dr S Jaishankar, Minister for External Affairs said, “Prime Minister Shri Narendra Modi has turned India’s developmental journey into a mass movement and it is under his able leadership that India has established itself as a global superpower to an extent that other nations look up to India in the matters of development and crisis alike.“

More than 750 eminent people from Indian Diaspora and New Zealand, particularly the business and entrepreneur community from Gujarat and Punjabi Sikh community, and including members of New Zealand Parliament including MPs Melissa Lee, Paul Goldsmith, Simeon Brown, Karen Chhour, Damien Smith, Andrew Bayly, Simon O Connor, Erica Stanford, Chris Luxon, Leader of the opposition, David Seymour, Leader of the ACT party, Thought Leaders, Entrepreneurs, Corporate leaders, educationists, Spiritual Leaders including Ms Neeta Bhushan, Indian High Commissioner to New Zealand;  Satnam Singh Sandhu, Chief Patron, NID Foundation and Chancellor, Chandigarh University; Prof Himani Sood, Founder NID Foundation; Mr Phil Goff, Mayor of Auckland and former Foreign Minister of New Zealand, Former MP and former leader of the National Party Simon Bridges and Former Governor General of New Zealand, Sir Anand Satyanand, and Mr Bhav Dhillon, Honorary Consul of India, along with CEOs of top companies like HCL, Infosys, Bank of India and Bank of Baroda were present at the historic event organised at Grand Ball Room of Cordis Hotel, Auckland.

The External Affairs Minister said, “From eradicating gender discrimination to strengthening health infrastructure, from empowering women by providing LPG gas cylinders to every household and skill development to every woman, to emancipating the common citizens of the country by their massive financial inclusion, and from making India a truly global education hub, to the digital transformation across the country, the Prime Minister has taken myriad initiatives to transform India into a truly superpower.“

Addressing the gathering, Dr S Jaishankar said, “Under the leadership of Prime Minister Shri Narendra Modi, India’s clout at global level has been increasing over the past 8 years, and the nation has now established itself as a global superpower.“

“With his pro-people governance model and farsighted policies, Prime Minister Shri Narendra Modi has made India’s developmental journey into a mass movement leading to unprecedented growth and prosperity, even as he has led India to its strongest position on the global map, to such extent that other nations look up to India in the matters of development and crisis alike,” added Dr Jaishankar.

“Our journey to the top is fuelled by our strong economy, large yet youngest population and growing international influence. Yet in line with the ancient Indian philosophy of Vasudhaiva Kutumbakam (the world as one family), which is also the principle of Prime Minister, India has never dreamt of its own uplift at the cost of another’s loss. India wishes for the welfare of the entire humanity and the whole world. The spirit of Vishwa Sadhbhavana stems from this very love and respect that India and the Prime Minister has for the people and humanity at the Global level. We have seen the efforts made by the country to bring the entire world together. This very spirit is the spirit of Sadhbhavana,” the minister said.

The Minister said that the trust and reassurance that the Indian diaspora across the globe have on the Indian government and particularly Prime Minister Narendra Modi has been astounding.

“The Indians living abroad have a belief that this government of Narendra Modi has got their back. Be it any situation, the Prime Minister has always made sure that he personally intervenes and oversees the circumstances. This was reflected in the evacuation of more than 4600 Indians from Yemen in Operation Rahat and that of over 20 thousand students from war-torn Ukraine in Operation Ganga. The love and respect for the Indian diaspora is now an important part of India’s foreign policy. On his foreign visits, despite a punishing schedule, the Prime Minister always takes out time to meet the Indian diaspora living in that country,” he said.

“Over the recent years, Indian diplomacy has become much more responsive and responsible, and the credit for this difference goes to our leader, Prime Minister Narendra Modi,” he added.

Satnam Singh Sandhu, Chief Patron, NID Foundation hailed Prime Minister Modi as an illustrious leader, highly experienced strategist but above all a great humanist who has taught Indians to dream and achieve big, as he expressed gratitude for the pro-people decisions taken by the current dispensation under the Prime Minister’s rule, including several decisions in the interests of Sikh community and the NRIs.

“The role of Indian Diaspora remains at the core of India’s pursuit of becoming a ‘Vishwa Guru’ (World Leader) and Modi Ji has made sure that they remain at the heart of it. It is only a leader of unparalleled political and humane acumen like Prime Minister, who could have understood this and done this. On every trip of any country, the Prime Minister takes out time to meet the Indian community there, to talk to them, interact with them and take stock of any problem or issues they might be facing,” he said, adding that the spirit of Vishwa Sadhbhavana is a reflection of this affection that the Prime Minister has for the people and humanity.

” ‘Vishwa Sadbhavana’ commemorates the spirit of Global Goodwill and the virtues of brotherhood, harmony, integration, and collective progress that it encompasses. Today’s event is first to be organised in New Zealand, and picks up from the legacy of the last events held at the City of Chicago, USA and Melbourne Australia, early this year by the NID foundation,“ he said.

“India is celebrating Azadi Ka Amrit Mahotsav to mark the 75 years of its independence. Our Prime Minister Narendra Modi has asked us to put in efforts to take Indian to the top in the Amrit Kaal, which is the next 25 years. Under his leadership, India has been pacing up to become the Vishwa Guru in this period of time,” he said.

Detailing about the book ‘Heartfelt-The Legacy Of Faith’ by the NID Foundation, Sandhu said that it was an honest attempt at documenting the facts of the history of the Sikh community and the teachings and philosophies of the Sikh Gurus.

“It captures the virtues of Sikhism that are Satt, Santokh, Daya, Nimrata and Pyar, and goes on to show that the values and ethos of the country are not forgotten, rather they are being implemented in our governance model because of their universal and timeless relevance. Taking the five essential virtues of Sikh living as the central theme, the book connects the various initiatives taken by Prime Minister Shri Narendra Modi Ji for the cause and welfare of the Sikhs and Punjab with the Sikh way of living, thereby highlighting the Prime Minister’s embodiment of upholding truthful values, compassion, humility, contentment, and love for all mankind,” he said.

The book details Prime Minister  Narendra Modi’s close association with the Sikhs and Punjab in his early days as a politician, as he rose through the political ranks to become a twice-elected Prime Minister of India, and how his respect for the teachings of the Sikh Gurus and his appreciation and affection for the Sikh community translated into action in the Government taking several landmark decisions for welfare and cause of the community, he added.

In his address, Mr Phil Goff, Mayor of Auckland said, “The two nations have a strong belief in democracy and human rights. In the difficult times that the world is going through right now, it is imperative that both New Zealand and India can deliver their values and beliefs to the rest of the world.”

It may be mentioned here that the NID Foundation has been working tirelessly for nation–building in various capacities. From implementing the new education policy to bringing Indian universities to the top positions at the international level, several decisive steps have been taken by the Foundation ever since its inception.

The other book, ‘Modi@20: Dreams Meet Delivery’ is a compilation of chapters by intellectual and domain experts, providing with an expansive exploration into the fundamental transformation of Gujarat and India over the last 20 year due to his unique kind of Governance.