India's best interests will be kept in mind while inking trade pacts: Piyush Goyal

Union Commerce Minister Piyush Goyal

India’s best interests will be kept in mind while inking trade pacts, Union Commerce Minister Piyush Goyal assured businesses on Tuesday.

”India First is our mantra, is our guiding principle,” Goyal told reporters on the sidelines of an event.Declining to divulge the exact contours of the ongoing trade talks with the US, Goyal said India is in talks with many countries.

"They continue to go on very smoothly in a positive direction and all is well,” he added.”We are covering a very wide array of subjects, a very wide array of products and I can assure business persons across the country that we are keeping the best interests of India at the forefront of our discussions,” Goyal said.

The bilateral trade agreement with the US will power the economy towards becoming a developed nation by 2047 when the country celebrates 100 years of independence, he said.

Speaking at the Dubai India business forum, Goyal said India is mulling to start an Indian Institute of Management and Indian Institute of Foreign Trade in the UAE.The decision to open these two premier educational institutes after the establishment of IIT must be seen as an important event illustrating India’s ties.

He said India wants Dubai to serve as the gateway for India’s engagement with the Middle East region, and added that 20 lakh Indians reside in the city.A slew of announcements were made by Dubai-based entities at the event, including the commencement of construction of the Bharat Mart at Al Jabeli.The mart will be completed by the end of next year, officials said.

The Bharat-Africa Setu which will help Indian exporters access 53 cities in the African continent served by DP World has also been launched.Besides, DP World has tied up with state-owned RITES for developing projects globally, and with Cochin Shipyard for ship repair, shipbuilding and ship repair clusters along the Indian coastline.Sheikh Hamdan bin Mohammed Al Maktoum, the crown prince of Dubai, was present at the occasion.

Goyal, whose comments on Indian startups recently sparked a debate, stated that he conducted an analysis which showed the entire ecosystem misunderstood his remarks.”It was a typical hatchet job by the Congress party with their various handles, completely distorting my comments and my effort to inspire our young startups to look for big aspirations,” the minister said.

Meanwhile, Goyal also told reporters that he sees a decline in the Congress under Rahul Gandhi’s leadership, a ”non-serious politician”.Amendments to the Waqf Act will finally bring justice to the Muslim community at large by ensuring an orderly management of Waqf for charitable and religious purposes.