India, China bound by ”unbreakable bond”:Narendra Modi

New Delhi

India and China are bound by an “unbreakable bond”, Prime Minister Narendra Modi said today while advocating that the two countries should know and understand each other better.

Citing the legacy of ancient civilization, he said India and China have had “some bond of relationship” for thousands of years.

“In this century, once again we have to give something to the world, say something. For this, it is important that we look at each other, know and understand (each other),” he said in a video message to the “Visit India Year 2015” event being held in Beijing.

“Currently, we are bound by the unbreakable bond,” he said, adding when the two countries come together, people will travel to and fro in large numbers.

Modi said he has personal connection with China as he hails from village in Gujarat’s Vadnagar which the famous Chinese traveller Hiuen Tsang had visited.

“These things are not just history but reflect a special bond,” he added.

Modi said he had been to China earlier and his experience had been very good. “I had read a lot of books about China but my experience was unique”.

The Prime Minister said while President Xi Jinping visited India last year, he will be visiting China this year.

Meanwhile in Beijing, External Affairs Minister Sushma Swaraj appealed to Chinese tourists to visit India to experience its diversity of culture which will be a unique experience for them.

She was addressing a gathering of mostly Chinese invitees.

A number countries in the world today wooing Chinese tourists as their numbers touched about 100 million last year raking up revenue of USD 102 billion, according to official media reports.

Indian official say about 1.74 lakh Chinese visited India last year, prompting India to step up its ‘Incredible India’ campaign to woo more tourists.

Over six lakhs Indians visited China which included tourists and businessmen.

The function was advertised by Tencent Weibo, akin to Twitter in China. It has nearly 100 million registered users.

This was the first time it advertised an Indian get together, one of its official said.

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