The Ambassadors of five Nordic countries visited Puducherry on Thursday as part of their exploratory trip to look for potential economic ties and research collaborations.
Nils Ragnar Kamsvag, Norwegian Ambassador to India, told The Hindu that they were in Puducherry as part of the annual visit. “We are on a tour to get an overview of the political situation in the States where we visit. We spent two-and-a-half days in Tamil Nadu before coming to Puducherry,” he said.
He said they were the first international team to have met the new Chief Minister in Tamil Nadu. “We met the Opposition party leaders. It is important for us to meet the leaders and to understand the political situation,” he said.
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Mr. Kamsvag said they met the Nordic businesses people operating here to learn about their experience of working in Tamil Nadu and Puducherry. “By talking to them, we will be able to learn the possibilities of helping our businesses,” he said.
Nordic countries with a population of 27 million are the 11th biggest economy in the world and have invested over $20 billion in India. More than 500 Nordic companies are operating in India, providing jobs to nearly 2,00,000 people.
“In the last three years, there has been a rapid growth in the scientific programme. We will have at least four research collaborations with India. We will be concentrating on four areas of research, including research in antibiotics, sustainable energy and smart grid, on how to utilise the sea and ocean to provide economic growth and polar research and geo hazards,” said the Norwegian Ambassador to India. They visited IIT-M in Chennai. One of the important areas of cooperation of Nordic countries with India is in the field of research.
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“From here, we will be going south to Tharangambadi in Nagapattinam to see our first workstation,” he said.
The five Ambassadors of the Nordic countries interacted with the students from Denmark, Finland, Norway, Sweden, and India at Alliance Francaise in Puducherry. Ambassadors Nina Irmeli Vaskunlahti (Finland); Peter Taksoe Jensen (Denmark); Thorir Ibsen (Iceland); and Harald Sandberg (Sweden) and Alliance Francaise Director Olivier Litvine were present.
The students studying Peace and Conflict Studies programme in Puducherry, run by Kulturstudier and the University College in Oslo and Akershus, in partnership with Indian institutions and NGOs, posed a wide range of questions to the ambassadors.
The Ambassadors called on Chief Minister V. Narayanasamy and discussed investment and opportunities in Puducherry.
Course coordinators Samrat S. Kumar and Elida Jacobsen spoke of the importance of studying global issues in an international and interdisciplinary setting. “Nordic students have been coming to Puducherry for the last 20 years through the organisation Kulturstudier and nearly 2,000 students attended this course,” he added.