Prime Minister Lee Hsien Loong will be visiting India on an official trip at the invitation of his Indian counterpart Narendra Modi from October 3 to October 7, the Prime Minister's Office (PMO) said on Monday.
PMO said in a statement that for the first three days Lee will be in New Delhi and will meet Modi. He will be hosted to lunch by the Indian Prime Minister.
According to the statement, both the Prime Ministers will also witness the exchange of three MOUs which will be marking the cooperation between the two countries in the fields of industrial property and skills development, as well as on the establishment of a North East Skills Centre in Assam.
PMO said PM Lee will also call on President Pranab Mukherjee and receive a call by Minister of External Affairs Sushma Swaraj. He will attend a reception for Singaporeans based in India.
After his stay in Delhi, Lee will be in Udaipur from October 5 to October 7 as Vasundhara Raje, the Chief Minister of Rajasthan, will also host Lee to a lunch.
PM Lee also has plans to attend the launch of the Centre of Excellence for Tourism Training that is a part of skill development collaboration between both the countries. In November 2015, India and Singapore had signed a Strategic Partnership deal.
Apart from these, the Singaporean Prime Minister will also witness the signing of an MOU marking the countries' cooperation in tourism and urban solutions, as well as an agreement on a capacity building programme in tourism and hospitality.
The Minister for Trade and Industry (Industry) S Iswaran, Acting Minister for Education (Higher Education and Skills) and Senior Minister of State for Defence Ong Ye Kung and Senior Minister of State for Defence and Foreign Affairs Mohamad Maliki Osman will accompany PM Lee on this visit.
Mrs. Lee will also be there along with PM Lee on his trip to India. Other delegates include Members of Parliament Denise Phua and Vikram Nair and officials from PMO, the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, Ministry of Trade and Industry and Ministry of Education will also accompany the prime minister.
In December 2012, Lee had visited India last to attend the ASEAN-India Commemorative Summit.
PMO said in its statement that in Lee's absence, Deputy Prime Minister and Coordinating Minister for National Security Teo Chee Hean will be the Acting Prime Minister on October 3 and October 4. While from October 5 to October 7 Coordinating Minister for Infrastructure and Minister for Transport Khaw Boon Wan will handle the responsibilities of PM Lee.
