JEDDAH, 2 June 2008 — Saudi and Indian speakers said on Saturday night that Saudi Arabia’s ‘Look East’ policy augured well for boosting bilateral political, economic and cultural relations with India. They emphasized that since the visit of Custodian of the Two Holy Mosques King Abdullah to India a few years ago, who termed India as his second home, there had been a flurry of activities leading to the continuous expansion of bilateral ties.
On the economic side, both countries continue to expand their bilateral relations. A number of Saudi companies have been doing business with India and some of the Indian firms have also made inroads into the Saudi market. One of the Saudi companies well entrenched in India is the Bushnak Group, which is doing business with India, especially in the water, education and energy sectors. In the water sector, Bushnak Group (India) operates Bushnak-Pallava Water Service Ltd. following an agreement signed in New Delhi in 2006, aside from involving itself in various other business activities, Dr. Adil Bushnak, chairman of Bushnak Group said in his presentation at SIBN’s third annual meeting held at the Inter.Continental Hotel. The meeting also felicitated Dr. Ausaf Sayeed, the outgoing consul general of India.
Bushnak said that his company began its Indian activities in 1992 and undertook water related activities with large Indian companies including Tata Steel, Hindustan Door Oliver, Bharat Heavy Electricals and Oil and Natural Gas Company, in addition to trading activities with a number of firms. “We are commencing the construction of our first project in Karaikal in south India and launching Moya-India, a water investment company,” Bushnak said.
In the education sector, Bushnak Group’s ATEICO Communications became the official representative of Indira Gandhi National Open University in Saudi Arabia in 2004. It started with 67 students and today the number exceeds 1,500 at its centers in Riyadh, Jeddah and Dammam. IGNOU Saudi Arabia has also produced at least four gold medalists from 2006 to 2008. ATEICO also represents Birla Institute of Technology, Indira College of English and Education Promotion Society of India.
Jeddah Chamber of Commerce and Industry’s Vice Chairman Mazen Batterjee said: “Personally, I enjoy working with Indians and I feel comfortable doing so. And this is what made me look at Indian companies as business partners since 1986.” He noted that during the more than three-year term of Dr. Sayeed, the number of business delegations between Saudi Arabia and India had increased sharply. “I personally made agreements with more Indian companies during Dr. Sayeed’s term,” he added.
“In fact, India is the only country to have the ISO quality award for its Haj operations, and that shows how organized the whole staff is under the leadership of the consul general,” he said, adding that the JCCI will look forward to provide assistance for expanding the bilateral relations.
Arab News Editor in Chief Khaled Almaeena said that both Saudi Arabia and India were blessed with long traditions of history. Referring to the post-9/11 situation, he said: “We don’t have to look to the West but look increasingly toward the East. Both have capacities and both face similar challenges. So both should take advantage of each other’s capacities,” he said. Almaeena also mentioned the Saudi Basic Industries Corporation(SABIC) which has set up a research center in the western Indian city of Ahmedabad. “Both countries are facing food problem and so there is immense scope to undertake joint research studies, especially in the matter of providing food security,” he added.
Jeddah Economic Forum Chairman Sami Fouad Bahrawi said that a Saudi businessman would always look to certain aspects while wanting to do business with India, including a friendly business culture that encourages new business development. “The Saudi entrepreneur should seriously consider all that India has to offer. There is so much information available on the Internet and there are many organizations ready to get things started quickly and effectively, including SIBN,” he added.
Indian Ambassador M.O.H. Farook said that he took upon the responsibility of strengthening political relations with the Kingdom, as the bilateral trade relations were already strong. “Our bilateral political relations got a boost with King Abdullah’s visit to India. “Yet, we have to go a long way. We don’t have to sell India (to you), but help you see India to realize its potential. India tops in telecom, medical facilities and professionals like engineers and technicians. What we need is a perfect understanding between the two countries,” he said.
The Indian consul general said that the Kingdom’s seven top trading partners included the United States and six Asian countries including India. He said that the success of his operations could be attributed to the fact that he styled himself as a CEO instead of a bureaucrat. “The concept of SIBN came to my mind not while being in the Kingdom but it germinated during my stint earlier in Qatar,” he said and mentioned some other organizations that he initiated including Indo-Saudi Medical Forum. Indian companies are fifth biggest investors in this part of the world and the bilateral trade exceeds $15 billion, he said.