Indian Ambassador to Russia Vinay Kumar: "The opening of the Consulate General in Kazan is a matter of several weeks"

Tatarstan attaches great importance to the development of cooperation with India, said the President of the Republic, Rustam Minnikhanov, at the business breakfast of the business forum "TIME: Russia – India. Mutual effectiveness". The business program of the forum starts today in the capital of Tatarstan.

According to Raisa RT, as part of the development of Russian-Indian relations, the authorities and business circles of the two countries are actively working to expand cooperation in various fields. "We are ready to participate in these processes at the regional level," he stressed.

Rustam Minnikhanov said that Tatarstan and India are exchanging visits. The Consulate General of India will soon be operational in Kazan, and the republic is working to open a trade and economic representative office in the country.

Ambassador Extraordinary and Plenipotentiary of India to Russia Vinay Kumar congratulated Rustam Minnikhanov on his election as President of the Republic of Tatarstan. He informed the participants of the business breakfast that Rustam Minnikhanov confidently won the elections, and this testifies to the concern for the people of the republic and the reciprocal support of the population. According to Vinay Kumar, the republic made a warm impression on Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi and the entire delegation during the BRICS Heads of state summit in 2024.

"Tatarstan is one of the fastest growing regions in Russia, and we understand its importance among the regions. The Republic ranks 7th in terms of contribution to the country's gross domestic product and is one of the most attractive regions from an investment point of view. In addition, there are a huge number of students from India studying here," Vinay Kumar said.

According to him, last year it was decided to expand the diplomatic presence in Russia, and Kazan was chosen as one of the two cities to open the Consulate General of India. According to him, the opening is already "a matter of several weeks, not months." Vinay Kumar did not rule out that the consulate in Kazan will open in November.

"I always say that Russia is more than 4 times larger than India in terms of land area, and India is 10 times larger in terms of population. We have very deep and broad complementary opportunities for cooperation," the ambassador said.

According to Raisa RT, the trade turnover between Tatarstan has more than doubled over the past year and amounted to $360 million. At the same time, 80% accounted for Tatarstan exports.

"Our republic is interested in promoting the products of its enterprises to India – these are trucks, helicopters, ships, gas pumping equipment, tires, compressors, medical instruments, machine-building and petrochemical products. We aim to expand cooperation with India in the fields of high technologies, electronics, energy, pharmaceuticals, light industry and others," said Rustam Minnikhanov.

At the same time, according to Raisa RT, cooperation in the field of investment cooperation has not yet been sufficiently developed. He invited Indian entrepreneurs to explore the potential and opportunities of the region, noting that Tatarstan occupies a leading position in the Russian rating of investment attractiveness of the regions. There are two special economic zones in the republic – Alabuga and Innopolis. The third zone is being prepared for launch. Plus, there are industrial and technoparks, business incubators, and others.

Vinay Kumar noted that the areas mentioned by the Rais of Tatarstan are promising for the development of cooperation. The republic may also be interested in India's systematic approach to health issues and the experience of developing the film industry.

Rustam Minnikhanov added that 1,167 students from India receive education in higher educational institutions of the republic. He suggested developing ties between universities in Tatarstan and India and implementing joint high-tech projects.

Vinay Kumar expressed the opinion that Tatarstan students could study at educational institutions in India, for example, in such specialties as English management, financial services and others.

"I want to thank you for participating in the business forum "TIME: Russia – India. Mutual effectiveness". This is the first time we have held an event of this format with your country. I am sure this will serve as a starting point for the implementation of joint projects and will contribute to strengthening Russian-Indian relations," the President of the Republic of Tatarstan addressed the participants of the business breakfast.