India’s Minister of State for External Affairs and Parliamentary Affairs V. Muraleedharan has emphasized on giving more priority to India’s economic relations with Saudi Arabia. He said that India’s economic relations with Saudi Arabia have been transformed from an energy partnership to multilayer cooperation.

Speaking to Arab News during an interview in Riyadh on Tuesday, V. Muraleedharan said, “Our bilateral trade has seen significant growth over the past few years and has exceeded $50 billion in the last fiscal year. Both India and Saudi Arabia are vibrant economies with good growth rates and their trade engagement is bound to grow in the years to come.

Also read: India Stood Out As Beacon Of Hope During Covid: FM Nirmala Sitharaman

Significantly, the cost of Saudi direct investment in India is about $ 3 billion. He said that both countries are emphasizing on further strengthening mutual cooperation in finance, IT, construction, and logistics. The Indian government is keen to strengthen the partnership with Saudi Arabia, which Muraleedharan described as 3T – “Trade, Tourism, Technology”. He said the four joint working groups under the Committee on Economy and Investment – ​​Agriculture and Food Security, Energy, Technology and Information Technology, and Industry and Infrastructure – are all closely involved.

Also read: Rajnath Singh And Mariya Didi Launch Delhi-Assisted Harbour Construction

Muralidhan said that India is one of the fastest-growing major economies of the world. India’s economy overtook the UK last year to become the fifth-largest economy in the world. With this growth rate, it is projected to become a $40-trillion economy by 2047 which coincides with the centenary of India’s independence.