India’s active and positive contribution to numerous ASEAN-led mechanisms over the years has been repeatedly recognized by Southeast Asian member states and other countries, said High Commissioner P. Kumaran.

India has deep cultural ties with ASEAN countries, which have been strengthened in recent years by buoyant economic engagement and a growing sense of a common future, he said Friday at a reception aboard the ICGS Samudra Paheredar, which is on a three-day visit to Changi Naval Base in Singapore.

India’s active and positive contribution to numerous ASEAN-led mechanisms over the years has been repeatedly recognized by Southeast Asian member states and other countries, he said.

The Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) is a regional grouping aimed at promoting economic and security cooperation among its ten members: Brunei, Cambodia, Indonesia, Laos, Malaysia, Myanmar, the Philippines, Singapore, Thailand and Vietnam .

During ICGS Samudra Paheredar’s stay here, the 123 crew members of the environmental protection ship had a very constructive dialogue with the experts and professionals at sea who are themselves at the forefront of Singapore’s clean and green initiatives, Kumaran noted.

We believe such professional engagements are well known and help improve cooperation and understanding for joint missions in coastal patrol and maritime incident response, he said.

The High Commissioner also welcomed on board 10 National Cadet Corps (NCC) cadets who traveled as Puneet Sagar Abhiyaan mascots to promote the environment of clean waterways and spread the message to future generations.

Robin Goh, Head of International Cooperation at the Singapore Police Coast Guard (SPCG), led his officers to the reception aboard Samudra Paheredar.

“In today’s ever-changing maritime environment, it is important that law enforcement agencies such as SPCG and the Indian Coast Guard continue to work closely together to ensure the safety of our waters,” Goh said.

SPCG looks forward to strengthening this friendship and collaboration with our friends from the Indian Coast Guard, he added.

We hope officers got a good look at SPCG operations, training methodology and facilities.

It’s a testament to the strong friendship and bilateral relationship between both agencies, Goh said.

DIG Pramod Pokhriyal welcomed guests aboard his ship and said the visit to Singapore was to promote Indian shipbuilding professionalism and show how much India and the Indian Coast Guard care about the maritime environment.

He underlined the importance of Puneet Sagar Abhiyaan in keeping our waters and oceans clean.

He further shared that the recently announced Chennai Regional Sea Pollution Center aims to deal with sea pollution across the Asian region and train the country’s response to sea pollution.

We know that Singapore is a very committed nation in terms of environmental protection and has various initiatives to protect the marine environment,” Pokhriyal said.

We truly hope that this visit will not only provide us with a memorable and enlightening experience, but will also strengthen and deepen our relationships for years to come. We look forward to more such interactions with the vision of making this world an even more beautiful, peaceful and vibrant place to be.

ICGS Samudra Paheredar arrived here from Campbell Bay on March 1st and sailed to Cambodia on Saturday.

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