David Wootten, the Lord Mayor of the City of London, will lead a
15-member business delegation to India Oct 7-10, authorities said.
The
delegation will visit New Delhi, Chennai and Mumbai to explore
opportunities for increased interaction in infrastructure financing,
financial sector development, regulatory reform and dispute resolution.
The
delegation includes senior representatives of major legal services
firms, infrastructure experts, bankers, and financial and professional
services specialists.
They will hold meetings with key policymakers, ministers, regulators and business leaders.
In
New Delhi, the lord mayor plans to meet Indian ministers to discuss
ways in which Britain and India can work more effectively together to
deliver better outcomes for India's infrastructure development and
financial sector reforms.
In Chennai, he will discuss the "Tamil Nadu Vision 2023" with government officials.
The
visit will conclude in Mumbai, where the lord mayor will meet officials
of the Reserve Bank of India, and Confederation of Indian Industry
president Adi Godrej.
"This visit comes at a time when India is
at a crossroads. Recent plans for economic reform - including an opening
up of the retail and aviation sectors - have added to the interest of
foreign investors in India," the lord mayor said.
"Reform is a
delicate process. Any reforms should open markets at a speed that allows
the economy to develop so that it can provide long-term, lasting
benefits for Indian society. We wait to see what the pace of change will
be, and what this means for India's business with Britain and the rest
of the world," he said.
