ADDRESS BY THE PRESIDENT OF INDIA, SHRI RAM NATH KOVIND AT THE LUNCHEON BANQUET HOSTED BY THE GOVERNOR OF VICTORIA
Melbourne : 23.11.2018
1. I thank you, Excellency, most sincerely for the warm words of welcome. I also wish to thank you and Mr Howard for your kind and gracious hospitality. I am honoured to visit your great country.
2. India and Australia share very warm, cordial and multifaceted relations. Our strategic partnership has given a new impetus to our ties. We have shared historical experiences, robust people-to-people ties and deep economic engagement. These have brought us together as friends and partners.
3. India has very special ties with Victoria. Melbourne is home to a large Indian community and the favourite cricket ground of Indians, but of course, outside India! We are happy that Indian diaspora is contributing positively to the Victorian society and economy.
4. We are encouraged that the Government of Victoria has put India at the forefront of its quest to establish new business and education networks. From Bangalore to Brisbane, and from Mumbai to Melbourne, we have a world of opportunities before us. Let us invest and innovate and write new codes for digital economy, and the technology script for the Fourth Industrial Revolution. Our young minds have the will and the power to provide choices for a more sustainable, equitable and prosperous world. They promise a brighter tomorrow for India-Australia partnership. Let us work to realize it.
5. On that optimistic note, Excellencies and Distinguished Guests, may I now request you to join me in raising a toast:
·To the good health of Her Excellency The Honourable Governor and Mr. Anthony Howard.
·To the prosperity and well being of the people of Australia, and
·To the enduring friendship between India and Australia.