New Delhi/Bhubaneswar: Chief Minister Naveen Patnaik left Delhi early on Monday morning to begin his second foreign tour in 22 years. He is travelling to Rome and Dubai.
Naveen met Indian Ambassador to Italy Dr Neena Malhotra after reaching ‘the Eternal City’ of the south-central European country.
Notably, he is visiting Rome at the invitation of the World Food Program (WFP) and would be sharing the transformative initiatives of Odisha in the field of food security and disaster management. He will also meet the Executive Director of WFP David Beasley and the senior leadership of WFP and have detailed discussions on Odisha’s partnership with WFP and future projects, which will further help the state in ensuring food security in a sustainable manner.
During his stay in Rome, the CM will meet Pope Francis, the Pope of Rome and Head of Catholic Church, in Vatican City. He is India’s first head of a provincial government to meet the Pope, a privilege which the Centre had denied to West Bengal chief minister Mamata Banerjee last year.
Also Read: First Indian CM To Meet Pope In Vatican: Naveen Patnaik Set To Achieve What Mamata Banerjee Couldn’t
Naveen will also meet the Odia diaspora from various parts of Europe. He will discuss the possible ways to engage with the diaspora in promoting the art and culture of Odisha and also enabling them to partner in the state’s transformational journey, the Chief Minister’s office had earlier said in a release.
On his way back, the CM will meet the investors from the Middle East and adjoining regions in Dubai. He will extend an invitation to the potential investors to come and invest in Odisha and assure them of all the support and facilitation by the state government. He will also have one-on-one meetings with some big investors from the region. A high-level industrial delegation from Odisha will also be present during the investors’ meet on June 29 for possible partnerships with foreign investors.
Naveen will meet the Odia Diaspora from the Middle East in Dubai and discuss with them Odisha’s transformational journey over the last two decades and invite them to partner with the state government.
The CM is being accompanied by Chief Secretary Suresh Mahapatra, Secretary to CM (5T) V K Pandian, Principal Secretary Food and Civil Supplies V V Yadav, Principal Secretary Industries Hemant Sharma, and Resident Commissioner in New Delhi Ravi Kant, the release added.
Also Read: Minister-Less Team Raises Eyebrows As Naveen Patnaik Set To Embark On His 2nd Foreign Trip
Notably, Naveen’s last foreign trip was in May 2012 when he toured the United Kingdom, which he had to cut short following an aborted coup bid by then Rajya Sabha member Pyarimohan Mohapatra in the BJD on May 29.
