Modi, Mauritius PM to inaugurate Port Louis SC built with Indian aid

nNEWDELHI:PRIME Minister Narendra Modi and his Mauritius counterpart Pravind Jugnauth will on Thursday jointly inaugurate the new Supreme Court built in Port Louis with Indian grant assistance, reflecting New Delhi’s sharpened focus on its “neighbourhood first” policy.

The building is one of five projects implemented under a $353million special economic package extended by India in 2016. The structure is the first Indiaassisted infrastructure project in the capital of Mauritius.

India also announced the implementation of nine “high impact community development projects” (HICDP) in the Maldives on Tuesday. Indian envoy Sunjay Sudhir handed over a symbolic cheque to mark the implementation of projects worth $5.6 million during a ceremony at the foreign ministry in Male, which was attended by foreign minister Abdulla Shahid and members of Parliament.

New Delhi has taken several steps in recent days to revive economic activity amid the Covid-19 crisis and to shore up relations with key neighbours amid the border standoff with China.

On Monday, India handed over 10 railway locomotives to

Bangladesh. Over the weekend, India announced a $400-million currency swap facility under the Saarc framework for Sri Lanka. Another $400 million was provided through an extended currency swap arrangement to the Maldives and India will soon “announce another substantial financial assistance package” to help post-covid economic recovery. The inauguration of the building in Port Louis will be done via video conference in the presence of senior members of the judiciary of Mauritius and other dignitaries. The building was completed within schedule and below the expected cost, the external affairs ministry said.