"Future very bright in terms of India-Malaysia ties": Malaysia's Minister of Digital Gobind Singh Deo

In an interview with ANI, he noted that the ties between India and Malaysia have been "strong" for a very long time and the two nations share a lot in terms of culture and religion.

On India-Malaysia ties, Gobind Singh Deo said, "The bilateral relationship between the two countries has been strong for a very, very long time. We share a lot in terms of culture, in terms of even religion. There's so much history between the two countries, and I think that was a starting point, that has built up over the years and strengthened even more. I think there's only more that both countries can do together moving ahead, particularly in this new world of technology. As the world becomes bigger, we become closer because of the platforms that we have. So, I think the future is very, very bright in terms of the relations between these two countries."

Gobind Singh Deo, who is in Odisha to attend the 18th Pravasi Bharatiya Divas, called it an "important event" to bring groups of people who can contribute to not just the diaspora here in India but around the world. He said that he would meet External Affairs Minister S Jaishankar and the Indian diaspora from Malaysia.

On being asked about Pravasi Bharatiya Divas, he responded, "It is an important event to bring around groups of people who can contribute a lot to not just the diaspora here in India but around the world. I think the focus should be that we in Malaysia have followed this event for a while and have participated as well. I'm happy to be here and contribute."

"We have events lined up for tomorrow and the day after. PM Shri Narendra Modi Ji is coming, that's an important event. I also have an opportunity to meet up with Minister Dr Jaishankar and we will then have a meeting with the Indian diaspora from Malaysia and try and of course, build partnerships which we can use and capitalise as we move along. It's a very important event, happy to be here and I am very thankful for the great hospitality all of you welcoming me here like this," he added.

The 18th Pravasi Bharatiya Divas Convention is being organized in partnership with the State Government of Odisha from January 8 to 10 in Bhubaneswar. Prime Minister Narendra Modi will inaugurate the 18th Pravasi Bhartiya Divas (PBD) convention at Bhubaneswar on Wednesday at 10:00 am.

The theme of this PBD Convention is "Diaspora's Contribution to a Viksit Bharat." A large number of Indian diaspora members from over 50 different countries have registered to participate in the PBD Convention.

Gobind Singh Deo lauded India for its digital transformation. He said that Malaysia is also looking at how they can build infrastructure that prepares their country for future technology.

On being asked about India's digital infrastructure, he said, "I think India has done phenomenally well when it comes to digital transformation. We look towards India and lots of lessons we can learn. Malaysia is going through that process as well now. We're looking at how we can build infrastructure that's not just ready for technology of today, but infrastructure that will prepare our country for future technology as well. All of us know that once we spoke of connectivity, 4G, and 5G, but we're looking at AI now, generative AI and technology will develop as we go along.

"So, the collaboration is key, we are in the process of looking at building on the Malaysia-India Digital Council. In August last year, there was a trip by Prime Minister Anwar Ibrahim and he met up with Prime Minister Shri Modiji here in that meeting one of the things that was agreed on was that we would form this council where we bring Malaysia and India together and I think that's something that's in progress and I'm sure that once that is up and running then we will see a lot more effort and more collaborations and partnerships that will bring both countries together in terms of digital transformation. So, definitely a lot of potential moving ahead," he added. (ANI)