Nitin Gadkari to visit Israel tomorrow

Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) President Nitin Gadkari will leave for Israel on Tuesday to study joint Indo-Israel research an development projects of mutual interest in the field of agriculture, irrigation, water management, renewable energies, crop production, nanotechnology and biotechnology.

He will be visiting some of the joint ventures set-up in the field of agriculture by Indian and Israeli companies and research institutes, said the party in a media release on Monday.

During his six-day goodwill visit, Gadkari will be accompanied by a delegation of senior BJP leaders including General Secretary (organization) Ramlal, General Secretary & former Rajasthan Chief Minister, Vasundhara Raje Scindia and Om Prakash Dhankar, President, BJP Kisan Morcha.

Other members the delegation include, Satpal Malik, Subhash Deshmukh & Manvendra Singh (all ex-mps) and Shri Vijay Jolly, Joint Convener, BJP External Affairs Cell.

The BJP President?s visit is also aimed at further promoting the people-to-people contacts between India and Israel, said the party.

According an international opinion survey conducted in to 2009 on behalf of the Israeli Foreign Ministry, India is the most pro-Israel country in the world.

Gadkari?s itinerary includes interaction with the Deputy Prime Minister & Minister for Intelligence Affairs, Dan Meridor, the leader of the opposition and former minister of foreign affairs, Tzippi Livni.

He will also be meeting members of the Likud Party and head of parliamentary India-Israel Group, Rachel Adatto.

The India-Israel Friendship Association & the Marathi Jewish community in Israel will be hosting a reception in honour of Gadkari and his delegation.

Gadkari and his delegation will also be visiting Israel Aerospace Industries where they will be given a presentation on counter-terrorism by Homeland Security.