BIMSTEC priority for India: Minister
Kathmandu, Aug 29 : A day ahead of the start of 4th BIMSTEC Summit, India's Minister of State for External Affairs V.K. Singh on Wednesday said that the sub-regional group of seven nations was a priority for India as it fulfilled the country's "Neighbourhood First" and "Act East" foreign policy goals.
Speaking at the 16th ministerial meeting of the Bay of Bengal Initiative for Multi-Sectoral Technical and Economic Cooperation (BIMSTEC) chaired by Nepal's Foreign Affairs Minister Pradeep Kumar Gyawali, the Minister said that with the completion of 21 years, BIMSTEC was at a critical juncture.
He reiterated India's sincere and abiding commitment to work with all BIMSTEC member- states for a safe, strong and prosperous Bay of Bengal region.
Earlier, a Foreign Secretary-level meeting discussed a wide range of issues like regional connectivity, customs cooperation, counterterrorism, regional security, agriculture cooperation, poverty alleviation and traditional medicine.
It also discussed establishment of a permanent Secretariat of BIMSTEC in Dhaka, Bangladesh.
During the meeting, the Foreign Secretaries of member-states agreed on setting up of a dedicated development fund for executing projects and conducting research in the region.
They decided to set up a technical team to finalise the modalities of the BIMSTEC Development Fund and decide its size and objectives, said Nepal's Foreign Affairs Spokesperson Bharat Raj Poudyal.
They also agreed on the drafting of a dedicated charter for the body by studying templates of charters of other regional bodies.
Nepal is the current Chair of the body of seven countries surrounding the Bay of Bengal which was formed in June 1997 and will be hosting the summit on August 30 and 31.
They also recommended trimming the numbers of areas of cooperation undertaken by the regional body and identifying focused agendas of cooperation.
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India-bound LPG tanker clears Hormuz
New Delhi (PTI): A tanker carrying liquefied petroleum gas (LPG) for India has sailed out of the Strait of Hormuz and is now headed towards the country, an official statement said on Sunday.
The Marshall Islands-flagged LPG carrier MT Sarv Shakti, loaded with 46,313 tonnes of LPG and staffed by 20 crew, including 18 Indians, cleared the key shipping chokepoint on May 2 and is expected to reach Visakhapatnam on May 13, it said.
The cargo -- enough to meet half a days requirement of the country -- will partly tide over supply constraints being faced since the start of the West Asia conflict more than two months back.
Ship-tracking data showed its position in Oman Gulf on Sunday evening.
The very large gas carrier has previously made runs between the Persian Gulf and Indian ports, has been chartered by state-owned Indian Oil Corporation (IOC).
Sarv Shakti is the first India-linked tanker to cross the war zone since a weeks-old US blockade of ships tied to Iran began, pushing transits through Hormuz back down to almost zero.
There are as many as 14 Indian flagged or India-owned vessels still stranded on the west side of the Strait of Hormuz.
The statement said no incident involving Indian-flagged vessels has been reported in the past 24 hours. The Ministry of Ports, Shipping and Waterways is working closely with the Ministry of External Affairs, Indian missions and maritime stakeholders to ensure crew welfare and uninterrupted operations.
The Directorate General of Shipping (DG Shipping) control room has handled 8,373 calls and more than 17,965 emails since activation, including 38 calls and 127 emails in the last 24 hours.
India has also facilitated the repatriation of more than 2,953 seafarers so far, including 31 in the past day from across the Gulf region.
Port operations across the country remain normal with no congestion reported, the statement added.
