India, Saudi Arabia ink 5 agreements to boost bilateral co-operation

India and Saudi Arabia have singed five agreements to boost the bilateral cooperation between the two nations.
The agreements were signed during the two day official visit of Prime Minister Narendra Modi to Saudi Arabia in Riyadh.
The visit to Saudi Arabia was part of PM Modi’s three-nation visit to Belgium,United States for Nuclear Security Summit and Saudi Arabia.
Five agreements singed are

• Agreement on Labour Co-operation: It was singed for recruitment of general category workers between the Ministry of Labour, Saudi Arabia and Ministry of External Affairs, India.
• Technical Cooperation Program: It was signed between Saudi Standards, Metrology and Quality Organization (SASO) and Bureau of Indian Standards (BIS).
• Executive Program for Cooperation in the Field of Handicrafts: It was signed between Saudi Commission for Tourism and National Heritage and Export Promotion Council for Handicraft (EPCH).
• MoU in the Exchange of Intelligence related to Money Laundering, Terrorism Financing and Related Crimes: It was signed between Financial Intelligence Unit of India and Saudi Arabia concerning Cooperation.
• Framework for Investment Promotion Cooperation: It was signed between Saudi Arabian General Investment Authority (SAGIA) and Invest India.

During his visit Prime Minister Narendra Modi gifted a gold-plated replica of the Cheraman Juma Masjid of Kerala to Saudi King Salman bin Abdulaziz Al Saud.
The mosque is situated in Thrissur district of Kerala and is  believed to be the first mosque built in India by Arab traders around 629 AD.The mosque has an ancient oil lamp that is always kept burning and believed to be over a thousand years old. People from all religions bring oil for the lamp as an offering.

Month: Current Affairs - April, 2016