India 'land of opportunity', PM Modi tells Qatari businessmen; urges them to invest

Describing India as a "land of opportunity", Prime Minister Narendra Modi today invited Qatar's business leaders to take advantage of it by investing in the country and promised to address "bottlenecks" identified by them.

"India is a land of opportunity. I have come to personally invite you to take advantage of this opportunity," Modi said in a roundtable meeting with Qatari business leaders, his first engagement on the second day of his visit to the oil-rich Gulf nation.

The Prime Minister identified agro processing, railways and solar energy as very promising areas for Qatari investment.

"All of you recognise the potential of India. I will address the bottlenecks you have identified," Modi said.

He described 800 million youth in India as the country's biggest strength.

"India's 800 million youth are its biggest strength.Infrastructure expansion and upgradation and manufacturing are my other priorities," Modi said.

He added that projects like smart cities, metros and urban waste management are geared towards upgrading quality of life of people.

The Prime Minister also praised the role of Emir of Qatar Sheikh Tamim bin Hamad Al-Thani in promoting India-Qatar business ties.

Earlier, Qatar's Minister of Trade & Economy Sheikh Ahmed bin Jassim Al Thani welcomed Modi and sought more intensive economic engagement with India.

The size of annual bilateral trade between India and Qatar is around $10 billion and both the countries would like to expand it significantly. Qatar has a major sovereign wealth fund and India is eyeing to attract investment from it.

Modi is on a five-nation visit and has landed in Qatar on Saturday from Afghanistan. Modi will also visit Switzerland, the US and Mexico as part of the tour.