India will work with the Government of Fiji to enhance bilateral trade, investment and cooperation in areas of education, health, science and technology says the Indian High Commissioner Mr Vinod Kumar.?Mr Kumar made this comment during the flag raising ceremony to mark the 65th Independence Day of India at Tamavua on August 15.??

Independence Day is when people in India pay homage to their leaders and those who fought for India's freedom in the past.??

India and Fiji are both developing countries that have several commonalities and shared interests.??
“We as developing countries need to join our efforts for a better and sustainable future for our people. India has achieved a lot in the past 64 years, however a number of challenges still remain. The people of India are committed to overcome these challenges and progress towards our goal of inclusive socio-economic development,” Mr Kumar said.??

“We are looking forward to work on our cooperation in the areas of education and health to assist the people of Fiji.? “There are two projects that we are considering at the moment. One is where we hope to bring some computers that we’ll put in rural communities so children can use and learn about computers and internet.? ?

“The other is a project in which we hope to establish a network between the hospitals in the Pacific and hospitals in India so that online advice and consultation can be taken care of.” ? ?
Mr Kumar said this year’s Independence Day was also a special one because they would start a year-long celebration to mark the 40th year of the Indian Cultural Centre (ICC) in Fiji. ? ?
A positive outcome is enhancement in tourism as the shooting of the first Indian film is now underway on the Coral Coast.? ?

“I think Fiji and India have a very good tradition in film making. There are people who have been coming here to make documentaries, film etcetera but for the first time we have a full length feature film from India in Tamil language, which is being shot here and I do hope this will lead to more film makers coming here to Fiji. We can showcase the beauty of Fiji in India,” Mr Kumar added. ? ?
Meanwhile, the inaugural celebration of 40 Years of ICC in Fiji was held at the Civic Auditorium at 6pm on August 15.