Bharat Chawla: India New Zealand Business Council Chair on the Prime Minister's delegation to India

New Zealand is looking to build stronger ties with India. 

The Prime Minister is heading to New Delhi and Mumbai on Saturday with a contingent of ministers and business leaders. 

Prioritising a deal with the fast-growing economic giant was a coalition condition with NZ First. 

India New Zealand Business Council Chair Bharat Chawla told Andrew Dickens he has confidence in this trip. 

He says it's a perfect opportunity as a lot of work has been done over the last 24 months to make it happen. 

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Episode Transcript

Speaker 1 (00:00):
The Prime Minister's just announced he's off to India. He's
going on Saturday and he's going to meet Prime Minister
no Endra Modi. He's taking the largest delegation our Prime
minister has ever traveled with. This is the first visit
since John Key went there in twenty sixteen. I think
this is the third visit that we've had a crack
at this. So Barrat Tala is the chair of the
India New Zealand Business Council. He joins me, Now, hell

(00:22):
about it?

Speaker 2 (00:24):
Hey, Hell, are you very good?

Speaker 1 (00:25):
Why is this trip so significant?

Speaker 2 (00:28):
I think if you want something done with India, this
would be a strong foundation taking ahead any discussion, any
negotiation with India.

Speaker 1 (00:37):
Okay, So look, only one point five percent of New
Zealand exports go to India. India's on track to be
the third largest economy in the world by twenty thirteen.
Why have we been neglecting this market for so long?

Speaker 2 (00:48):
I think this question has to be asked from a
lot of ministry and political diplomats. It has not neglected,
it's just the timing was not there. I feel that
the government with a lot less after twenty sixteen, and
that has made us into a kind of a back seat.
But last twelve months with the current government and the

(01:10):
minister is going left right center, which is kind of
bringing the things on track. So we can say that
we are late, but we are not too late. Okay.

Speaker 1 (01:20):
So what do we have to do in this trip
to make sure that our relationship is closer that we
can increase our terms of trade.

Speaker 2 (01:28):
I think one thing which we can say or we
can kind of positive say that the meeting with Minister
Prime Minister Modey is kind of a big win, which
we were as a MCBC asking from last a few years.
Now getting to a with a bigger delegation show that
we are in a relationship mode. We are not only
in the transitional mode. So this trip kind of gives

(01:52):
a very good message to Indian government and the private
companies in India that museum is open for business and
we should be looked into.

Speaker 1 (02:00):
What do you think India wants from us? I mean,
what do we make that they would want?

Speaker 2 (02:04):
I think the biggest thing India is looking currently is
investment in India. At the same time bringing technology in
India and kind of bringing what they see that helped
to grow India. So currently in every negotiation and every
deal which India is doing, they've been always putting that
how India can grow together with you and that will

(02:25):
help us to grow or grow the other side of
the business too. So what we can do is we
take the investments. We talk about the technology transfers. There's
a lot, a lot needs and can give to India.

Speaker 1 (02:39):
Is a nuclear free stance a problem because India has
ambitions for their place in the world militarily, they're already
a nuclear power. Is our stance, our nuclear energy and power?
Is there a problem when we talk to the Prime
Minister of India.

Speaker 2 (02:54):
I think I don't see that is kind of an
issue with Newism only because see like every country had
their own chance and to be honest news and should
say be what we want to do. But in a
couple of things, India also don't want any anything which
is from a news in perspective that they want needs
them to support on everything. But again at the trade

(03:16):
is one area we talk about. I said, a nuclear
diplomacy is separate area to work in. There's always kind
of a common area to start it. And we are
not too in that discussion of a kind of nuclear diplomacy.
Yet I can say that.

Speaker 1 (03:31):
Okay, so how confident are you of success?

Speaker 2 (03:34):
Finally, I think I think from I we are. We
are a lot positive, a lot optimistic. Now a lot
have been done by a lot of companies from New
Zealand to India or in India in the last twenty
four months to make this happen. So this is a
perfect opportunity and a perfect I say that tailwind for

(03:56):
New Zealand to get something from India.

Speaker 1 (03:58):
Absolutely about a child. I thank you so much for
your turn here as the chair of the India and
New Zealand Business Council. For more from Early Edition with
Ryan Bridge.

Speaker 2 (04:07):
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