Prime Minister Narendra Modi met Singapore PM Lawrence Wong at the historic Sri Temasek bungalow - the official residence of the Singaporean Prime Minister - for a "private dinner" on Wednesday, a few hours after his arrival in the country on the final leg of his two-nation tour.
The ongoing visit at the invitation of Prime Minister and Minister for Finance Lawrence Wong is PM Modi's fifth visit to Singapore. He had last visited the country in 2018.
On Thursday, Prime Minister Modi will receive an official welcome at the Parliament House, call on Singapore President Tharman Shanmugaratnam and meet Prime Minister Wong. PM Modi will also meet Emeritus Senior Minister Goh Chok Tong.
Following the bilaterals, the PM is scheduled to participate in a business roundtable with Singaporean business leaders organised by the Singapore Business Federation, interact with Singapore's semiconductor ecosystem players, and engage students from Singapore in the India Ready Talent Programme who did internships in India, and the Odisha World Skills Center interns in Singapore companies.
PM Modi arrived in Singapore Wednesday afternoon after wrapping up a historic two-day trip to Brunei, the first bilateral visit by an Indian PM to the southeast Asian nation.
Upon his arrival in Singapore, PM Modi was received by Singapore's Minister of Home Affairs and Law K Shanmugam.
At the hotel, members of the Indian diaspora gave a rousing welcome to the Prime Minister with traditional Maharashtrian dance and drums.
Adding to the excitement of those present at the venue, including several children, PM Modi also tried his hand at the dhol.
Expressing his enthusiasm, PM Modi shared on X, "Landed in Singapore. Looking forward to the various meetings aimed at boosting the India-Singapore friendship. India's reforms and the talent of our Yuva Shakti make our nation an ideal investment destination. We also look forward to closer cultural ties."
During his stay, PM Modi will participate in several meetings aimed at further strengthening the strategic partnership between the two countries.
The discussions are also expected to focus on deepening cultural connections and fostering stronger people-to-people ties.
Key areas of enhanced cooperation under consideration include digital innovation, skill development, sustainability, healthcare, connectivity, and advanced manufacturing.
"I look forward to the opportunity to meet President Tharman Shanmugaratnam, Prime Minister Lawrence Wong, Senior Minister Lee Hsien Loong and Emeritus Senior Minister Goh Chok Tong. I will also meet with leaders of Singapore's vibrant business community. I look forward to my discussions to deepen our Strategic Partnership with Singapore, particularly in new and emerging areas of advanced manufacturing, digitalization, and sustainable development," said PM Modi in his departure statement on Tuesday.
Last week, a high-level Indian delegation, including External Affairs Minister S. Jaishankar, Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman, Commerce and Industry Minister Piyush Goyal, and Railways Minister Ashwini Vaishnaw, had participated in the second India-Singapore Ministerial Roundtable (ISMR) held in Singapore.
PM Modi's visit is expected to further enhance the relationship between India and Singapore, emphasising both economic and cultural collaboration.
"Singapore is India's largest trade partner in ASEAN and it is a leading source of foreign direct investment. Singapore is India's sixth largest trade partner worldwide and the largest source of FDI during the last financial year. Investments have also been very large since 2000 till now we have had cumulative FDI of about 160 billion US dollars. There will be an interaction with business leaders during Prime Minister's visit and this will be an important element of the visit as the CEOs will be listening to India's growth story first hand from the Prime Minister and the opportunities that it presents for them," said Jaideep Mazumdar, Secretary East at the Ministry of External Affairs (MEA) before PM left for the two-nation visit.
PM inaugurates Charlapalli Railway Terminal in Hyderabad for regional development
Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Monday virtually inaugurated the Charlapalli Railway Terminal in Hyderabad and said this would accelerate regional development. It is the fourth terminal station in Telangana after Secunderabad, Hyderabad and Kacheguda.
8 jawans, driver killed as Maoists blow up security vehicle in Chhattisgarh
In the most gruesome Maoist attack in the New Year, eight jawans and a driver have been killed after the rebels blew up a security vehicle in Chhattisgarh's Bijapur district, police sources said on Monday.
Historic milestone in J&K's integration into national railway network, says PM Modi
"The inauguration of the Jammu railway division is a historic milestone in the integration of J&K into the national railway network as also in the development of infrastructure and connectivity of J&K," he said.
Protesting farmers have agreed to hold talks with court-appointed panel: Punjab govt tells SC
The Punjab government on Monday apprised the Supreme Court that the farmers protesting at the Punjab-Haryana border have agreed to hold talks with the court-appointed panel.
Atishi breaks down at press conference, says Ramesh Bidhuri is abusing her father
With tears in her eyes, an emotionally disturbed Delhi Chief Minister Atishi on Monday hit out at BJP candidate from Kalkaji seat Ramesh Bidhuri for stooping so low to attack his 80-year-old educationist father.
GRP arrested 35 human traffickers in Tripura in 5 months
The Government Railway Police (GRP) arrested 35 human traffickers in the last five months in Tripura for facilitating illegal entry of Bangladeshi nationals and Rohingyas into India, officials said on Monday.
23 injured in two separate road accidents in Tripura
At least 10 students and a woman suffered breathing problems and six of them immediately shifted to the government-run Govind Ballabh Pant Medical College and Hospital and their condition stated to be not serious.
Abhinaba Banik to represent Tripura in National Youth festival 2025 as state youth icon student-scientist
The Directorate of Youth Affairs & Sports of Tripura government has nominated Abhinaba Banik to represent the state as State Youth Icon Student-Scientist at the National Youth Festival.