Dubai Expo 2020: Piyush Goyal says India & UAE 'not competitors', have 'shared interest'

After a year's delay due to the COVID pandemic, Expo 2020 opened in Dubai on Thursday with an extravagant ceremony headlined by British pop star Ellie Goulding and Italian tenor Andrea Bocelli. Dubai Expo 2020 will be the world's second-largest event (after the Tokyo Olympics), attracting millions of guests from all over the world. Now, the Union Minister of Commerce and Industry, Piyush Goyal, who will be inaugurating the India Pavilion at Dubai Expo 2020, outlined that India and UAE are not competitors but have shared interests. 

"UAE and India have shared interest. We are not in competition, we complement each other. UAE investors and its leaders are very positive about doing business and expanding trade with India. Throughout the pandemic, Indians wanted to come back home. But UAE didn't let any Indians go because they did not want them to go. They took care of them like their own family members. It's a huge message about love and affection," said Goyal at Dubai Expo 2020. 

Goyal added that both countries have demonstrated the highest level of friendship during the COVID-19 pandemic. "We have supported UAE, wherever we could. They have supported India. This is what I call brotherhood, which will be remembered for many years."

Coinciding with India's celebrations of Amrit Mahotsav, 75 years of Independence, Dubai Expo 2020 will be a significant platform for India to showcase its vibrant culture and tremendous growth opportunities for the next six months, said a Government of India statement as reported by ANI. 

India Pavilion at Dubai Expo 2020

Several other companies will participate, including Hindustan Unilever Limited, PepsiCo, HSBC, ITC, Facebook, EaseMyTrip, Oyo, Standard Chartered Bank, Trident Group, Baidyanath, Apollo Hospital, Sun International, MIKO, Daawat Rice, Bank of Baroda, Patanjali, Dabur, BLS International, Petrochem, Nikai, Al Dobowi, Shycocan, NPCI, and Jagran Lake.

During the next six months, a substantial number of Memorandums of Understanding are scheduled to be signed. Meanwhile, the India Pavilion will have a unique kinetic facade made up of 600 different coloured blocks. It's being built as a mosaic of rotating panels that will represent various themes as they spin on their axis. The exhibit is a one-of-a-kind amalgamation of India's rich past and modern achievements, and it embodies the subject of 'India on the Move'.

As India commemorates its 75th anniversary of Independence, the India Pavilion will replicate the Amrit Mahotsav, which was started by India's Prime Minister and will showcase the New India through a variety of activities and cultural extravaganzas.

(Inputs: ANI)

Image: PTI/AP