As India-Uzbek bonhomie goes zenith, BW Businessworld and TrustLegal create a Business Bridge to capture its essence

As the camaraderie between both the countries are getting robust with each passing moment, BW Businessworld decided to host BW Dialogue- India Uzbekistan Investment Corridor, a joint initiative of BW Businessworld and Trust legal.

During India-Uzbekistan virtual bilateral summit in December 2020, PM Modi remarked that his country aims to further intensify its development partnership with Uzbekistan and also expressed happiness that many projects are being considered in that country under the Indian Line of Credit. While signing an agreement, it was announced that the Indian side confirmed the approval of US$ 448 million of Line of Credit for four developmental projects in Uzbekistan in the fields of road construction, sewerage treatment and information technology. This was in addition to India announcing a US$ 1-billion line of credit to Uzbekistan in 2018. Furthermore, bilateral trade between India and Uzbekistan stood at US$235 million in 2017-18 and it is going sky-high.

While Prime Minister Narendra Modi visited Uzbekistan in July 2015, Shavkat Mirziyoyev President of Uzbekistan visited New Delhi in Autumn 2018 and January 2019. As the camaraderie between both the countries are getting robust with each passing moment, BW Businessworld decided to host BW Dialogue- India Uzbekistan Investment Corridor, a joint initiative of BW Businessworld and Trust legal, on 10thJune 2021.

The event is named ‘Developing the Future Prospects Of Investment Opportunities in India and Uzbekistan’. The icing on the cake will be a special address by the Ambassador of Uzbekistan to India His Excellency Dilshod Akhatov and Ambassador of India to Uzbekistan His Excellency Manish Prabhat. There is also a special keynote address by Murari Lal Jalan, Chairman, MJ Developers and leading Businessman in Uzbekistan who is also acquiring Jet Airways in India.

Apart from the Inauguration of India Uzbekistan Investment Corridor Logo, there will two discussion forums, which will be spread across two panels, with the focus on investment in healthcare, education, and infrastructure in panel 1, and travel, legal framework, and hospitality in panel 2.

The first panel discussion on ‘Investment Opportunities in India and Uzbekistan with a special focus on Healthcare, Education, and infrastructure sectors’ will be moderated by Dr. Annurag Batra, Chairman & Editor-in-Chief BW Businessworld & exchange4media Group. Other key panellists in the session would be Dr. Atul Chauhan, Chancellor, Amity University President, Ritnand Balved Education Foundation CEO, AKC Group of Companies, Prof. (Dr.) C. Raj Kumar Founding Vice-Chancellor O.P. Jindal Global University, Kamal Solanki Chief Executive Officer Venkateshwar Hospital, Vikram Vuppala, Founder & CEO NephroPlus and Dr. D K Gupta Chairman & Managing Director FELIX.

There will also be a Panel Discussion on ‘Investment opportunities in India and Uzbekistan with a special focus on taxation, legal framework, hospitality, travel and natural resources sectors’. Some of the esteemed panellists of this session are Sudhir Mishra, Advocate, Founder and Managing Partner, Trust Legal, Niti Batra, CEO Joy Travels, ILkhom B. Azizov Senior Partner Azizov & Partners Law Firm Uzbekistan, Sherzod Utkirkhujaev Partner SETTLE Law Firm Uzbekistan and Nodir Yuldashev Partner GRATA International Law Firm.

Both the sessions are expected to delve into the agreements signed between both the countries that are aimed at expanding cooperation in a range of areas including new and renewable energy, digital technologies, cybersecurity, community development projects, and in sharing of information on the movement of goods. There will also be concluding Remarks by Dr. Annurag Batra and Sudhir Mishra.

It is to be mentioned that both the nations had many historical ties as both of them are on the Silk Road. Babur, the founder of the Mughal Empire which ruled India from 1526–1857, was born in Andijan in present-day Uzbekistan. India’s first Prime Minister Jawaharlal Nehru visited Tashkent and Samarkand during his state visit to the Soviet Union on 7–23 June 1955. He visited Tashkent again during his state visit on 6–12 September 1961. Tashkent was the location of a historic meeting in January 1966 between Indian Prime Minister Lal Bahadur Shastri and Pakistani President Muhammad Ayub Khan. India- Uzbekistan have strong cultural ties, be it the advent of Mughal leaders from Fargana in Uzbekistan or the 1966 Tashkent Agreement. It can be something as recent as the virtual summit between the two countries where 9 agreements were signed.

Over and above the historical significance, Uzbekistan is a landlocked nation that is unable to release its full potential. However, they are rich in uranium, natural gas, oil, and rare earth minerals among others. They are beginning to exploit this potential, and India can be a partner given its market potential and want of high-quality minerals. Surprisingly, their bilateral trade does not go into billions despite their proximity. This is something which is expected to be deliberated upon extensively.

Above all, Uzbekistan is important for India’s security cooperation given their military might, and both are against religious extremism. Both countries are also a member of Shanghai Cooperation Organisation.

(BW Online Bureau)