New Indian high commissioner accredited |16 November 2022
Mr Pande presents his credentials to President Ramkalawan (Photo: Joena Meme)
The new high commissioner of India to Seychelles, Kartik Pande, presented his credentials to President Wavel Ramkalawan yesterday at State House.
“India and Seychelles already have a very warm and cordial relationship and it extends to all areas of bilateral engagements. My primary objective of being here is to chaperone that relationship so that it becomes deeper. Both our countries should have further connectivity, further trade, further cooperation, diaspora engagement and Seychelles and India have good cooperation on international forum,” stated the new high commissioner (HC).
HC Pande also said that “if you look at the partnership between India and Seychelles, it is geared towards development, capacity building in different sectors and cooperation through the ‘high impact development projects’”.
Every year India offers Seychelles some scholarships but unfortunately not all are being filled. To this HC Pande stated that “for sure that is part of the process to revise and relook at the scholarships that are more relevant to the country. It might not be immediate but this is part of my mandate”.
Before coming to Seychelles, Mr Pande was a Joint Secretary (IOR) in the Ministry of External Affairs in New Delhi. He had postings as Third Secretary in the Embassy of India in Paris, as Second Secretary in High Commission of India in Mauritius, as Second Secretary and Head of Chancery in Embassy of India in Paris, France, as Under Secretary in the Ministry of External Affairs, New Delhi, as Deputy Secretary in the Ministry of External Affairs, New Delhi, First Secretary in High Commission of India in Colombo and Director of various organs in the Ministry of External Affairs, New Delhi.
The Republic of India and the Republic of Seychelles established diplomatic relations in June 1976.
Married with two children, the Indian HC will be based in Victoria, Seychelles.
Vidya Gappy