On a goodwill visit to China, the Gujarat Chief Minister, Mr Narendra Modi, today made a strong pitch for Chinese investments, asserting that his state, which is the “growth engine” of India with the best infrastructure, offers excellent returns for foreign investments.

Mr Modi, who is on his fourth visit here, struck an emotional chord while addressing a well-attended China-India business get-together, stating that he found “abundant love and affection” during his trips to China, whose people have a special place in his heart.

“China and its people have a special place in my heart. I admire their hard working, disciplined and resilient nature and above all, their sense of history. Our cultural bonds are very strong and deep-rooted. Over the years, our relations have further strengthened. We are committed to making them still better, fruitful and productive,” Mr Modi said.

“I have seen growing interest among Chinese companies to work in Gujarat. We wholeheartedly welcome them. My personal visit is to reinforce that process,” he said.

Mandarin school

Mr Modi also announced plans to open a Mandarin school to promote learning of Chinese language in Gujarat.

“To give a big boost to the economic interaction, we must emphasise on cultural exchange. I am keen to start a Mandarin language school. We also have a number of Buddhist places which can be the driver of cultural exchange. You may be happy to know that Gujarat has already emerged as a great tourist destination in the Asian region,” he said.

5th largest investor

About 80 Chinese companies took part in the “Business and Investment Opportunities in State of Gujarat”, jointly held by embassy of India here along with the China Chamber of Commerce for Import and Export of Machinery and Electronic Products (CCCME).

Coinciding with his visit, official figures released today said the Chinese investments abroad have gone up by $ 67.8 billion this year, registering a 21.7 per cent increase compared to 2009.

More than $300 billion was invested abroad by 2010, making China the 5th largest foreign investor in the world, Mr Li Jiping, Vice-President of China Development Bank, said.

$62-billion trade

By the end of 2010, Chinese companies operating overseas had hired over 1.1 million people, 800,000 of them foreign employees, Mr Zhang Xiaoqiang, Vice-Minister of the National Development and Reform Commission, said.

Though China-India trade touched about $62 billion last year, Chinese investments in India amounted to only a few hundred million dollars.

India is currently wooing China to get a large share of billions of dollars of infrastructure projects coming up all over the country.

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