PM Modi calls for transit access among SCO nations
   Date :17-Sep-2022

PM Modi  
 
 
SAMARKAND, 
PRIME Minister Narendra Modi on Friday called on the SCO to develop reliable and resilient supply chains to offset the disruptions caused by the COVID-19 pandemic and the Ukraine crisis and said better connectivity and granting “full rights” of transit facilities by member States is important to achieve the goal.
In his address at the summit of the eight-member grouping in this historic Uzbek city, Modi said the Indian economy is expected to grow at 7.5 per cent this year and that India supports “greater cooperation and mutual trust” among the Shanghai Cooperation Organisation (SCO) member States.
With Russian President Vladimir Putin, Chinese President Xi Jinping, Pakistan Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif and other leaders of the bloc listening, Modi said the pandemic and the Ukraine crisis have caused many disruptions in global supply chains, leaving the world facing “unprecedented” energy and food crises.
It is for the first time Modi and Xi came face-to-face at the summit in Samarkand since the start of the border stand-off between India and China in eastern Ladakh around 28 months back.
“India supports greater cooperation and mutual trust among SCO members. The pandemic and the crisis in
Ukraine have caused many disruptions in global supply chains, leaving the world facing unprecedented energy and food crises,” he said.
“The SCO should strive to develop reliable, resilient and diversified supply chains in our region. For this, better connectivity will be required, as well as it will also be important that we all give full rights of transit to each other,” he said. Modi’s emphasises on transit for trade comes amid Pakistan’s reluctance to provide such a facility for two-way trade between India and Pakistan.
Referring to food insecurity across the globe, the Prime Minister pitched for promotion of the cultivation and consumption of millets. The Prime Minister said India today is one of the most affordable destinations for medical and wellness tourism in the world.