Envoy urges Indians to visit Japan

Delegations comprising both political leaders and business giants have come to India from Japan in the last few months but no delegation has travelled from India to Japan, complained Yasukuni Enoki, ambassador of Japan in India.

"On an average the Japanese embassy at New Delhi is receiving around 10 delegations every month. This shows the amount of interest in mind of Japanese investors for India, but unfortunately Japan has not received a single major delegation in years", said Enoki at a session on 'Perspective of India-Japan relationship in the present century', organised by Bengal Initiative.

West Bengal (WB) and Kerela had the potential to be the most prosperous states in India, thinks Enoki. "WB and Kerela are often underestimated but these two states are expected to become the most prosperous states of India. WB is emerging as one of the safest states for foreign investment", he pointed out. Speaking on the changing perspective about India, Enoki quipped that India was ready to join the world 'management' group rather than being the 'trade union leader'.

"India's emerging position in areas of politics, economy and world growth is indispensable. By 2010 India is most likely to be one of the four largest global powers with China, Japan and United States of America", he said.

The combination of size and growth is the key to India's strength, he explained.

Citing the case of MCC PTA India Corp Ltd , the subsidiary of Mitsubishi Chemical Corporation (MCC) in WB, Enoki said India has been the choice for Japanese investors primarily due to growth prospects and political stability.

"Data shows that India can maintain its growth rate for many more years, and even till 2050, more than 60 per cent of its people would belong to the working generation", he said.

Despite China's high rate of growth, Japanese investors preferred India owing to its ability to sustain growth. "There are very few countries in the world today which can sustain such a rate of growth along with reduction of income inequality. This often leads to political unstability, which is of concern to Japanese investors", he explained.

He urged for more people to people interaction to the accelerate the changing perspective about India in Japan. "Till a couple of years back, India was always mentioned with Pakistan and its problems with neighbouring countries. The image is changing and this is the ideal time for more interaction to speed up the process", Enoki said.