The Emir of Qatar, Sheikh Hamad bin Khalifa al Thani will visit India from April 8-10. During his visit, he will hold bilateral consultations with India’s Prime Minster, Dr. Manmohan Singh. While discussions will be held on a gamut of bilateral issues, central to talks will be investment and matters related to export of gas.
India-Qatar bilateral trade has grown exponentially in the last few years; from $1.2 billion in 2005, it reached $4.6 billion in 2010. Import of crude oil and hydrocarbons by India from Qatar form a large chunk of the bilateral trade; along with the purchase of 7.5 million tonnes of hydrocarbons annually, last year India bought four million tonnes of crude oil. Several Indian companies such as TCS, L&T, Wipro, NIIT, Tech Mahindra, Punj Lloyd and Voltas are also present in Qatar. Moreover, over 500,000 Indians also reside in Qatar; making it the largest foreign community staying in Qatar.
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