From Aditi Khanna
London

Prime Minister Narendra Modi today arrived here on his much-anticipated maiden visit to the UK that will see him holding talks with top British leadership including his counterpart David Cameron.

The Prime Minister flew into the British capital on his three-day visit with a hectic schedule aimed at boosting Indo-UK economic ties.

The visit will start with talks with Cameron at 10 Downing Street following which he will also address a joint press conference at the Foreign and Commonwealth Office (FCO).

Ahead of his departure, he tweeted: “Leaving for UK. I am hopeful this visit will strengthen economic ties between India and UK & bring more investment to India. #makeinindia.”

A brief stop to pay tributes at the Mahatma Gandhi statue in Parliament Square will be followed by speeches at the Houses of Parliament and then at the Guildhall in the financial hub of London.

His talks with Cameron will carry on at the British Prime Minister’s country residence of Chequers in Buckinghamshire, where he is being hosted overnight.

Tomorrow, Modi returns to London for a CEOs round-table which is likely to include representatives from major British companies like Rolls-Royce and Vodafone.

The pomp and ceremony attached to the visit is expected to include a special tricolour flypast by the Red Arrows Royal Air Force (RAF) Aerobatic Team over Buckingham Palace before the Prime Minister sits down for lunch with Queen Elizabeth II ahead of his mega diaspora address at the iconic Wembley Stadium in north London.

Modi heads to Ankara to attend the G20 summit on Saturday after inaugurating a new statue of 12th Century philosopher Basaveshwara as well as a new Ambedkar memorial in London.

A visit to the Tata Motors’ owned Jaguar Land Rover (JLR) factory in Solihull, in the West Midlands region of England, will be the last item on his UK agenda.

“My visit to UK is the first Prime Ministerial visit in almost a decade. I have had the opportunity to meet Prime Minister David Cameron at various international forums and our meetings have been productive. Prime Minister Cameron is a good friend of India’s, and we in India have had the privilege of welcoming him thrice during his first term as Prime Minister,” Modi had written in a Facebook post ahead of the visit.

PTI