Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau, who arrived in India last evening, visited Taj Mahal in Agra with his family on Sunday.
Canadian PM Trudeau is accompanied by his wife Sophie Gregoire Trudeau and children Hadrien, Ella-Grace Margaret and Xavier James Trudeau. The family visited the Mughal mausoleum and also made an entry in the visitors’ book.
Earlier, the family posed for cameras with folded hands in the signature Indian greeting of Namaste, when they arrived in India last evening.
Strategic partnership underpinned by shared values of democracy and pluralism! Namaste to the Right Honorable @JustinTrudeau, Prime Minister of Canada as he arrives on the State visit to India from 17-24 February, 2018. pic.twitter.com/hcPSLDm0kx
— Raveesh Kumar (@MEAIndia) February 17, 2018
Trudeau is on a week-long official visit to India and is scheduled halt at Amritsar, Ahmedabad, Mumbai and New Delhi.
Also read | Canadian PM visit; defence, counter-terrorism on agenda
Trudeau’s Amritsar visit to the Golden Temple, the holiest of Sikh shrines, carries a political message to a huge constituency back home in Canada with a big Punjabi, especially Sikh, population settled there.
Trudeau, who took office in November 2015, inducted four ministers of Punjabi-origin in his government.
Canada is home to a large Indian diaspora, as approximately 3.6 per cent of Canadians are of Indian heritage and India is Canada’s second-largest source of immigrants. The majority of the immigrants are from Punjab.
Canada is also a leading education destination for Indian students, with approximately 124,000 Indians procuring valid Canadian study permits last year.
The visit comes nearly three years after Modi visited Canada in April 2015. The last visit of a Canadian Prime Minister to India was in November 2012.
As per media reports, the objective of Trudeau’s visit to India is to expand overall ties between the two countries with a focus on defence and security, counter-terror cooperation, trade and investment, and tackling climate change.
Both countries are also expected to deliberate on enhancing cooperation in the civil nuclear sector.
Justin Trudeau, who is in India till 25 February, will meet Prime Minister Narendra Modi on 23 February.