Riyadh: The over 1 million Indian blue collar workers in Saudi Arabia on Saturday were praised by Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi for the hard work they have put in for the development of the country.
“It is your sweat and toil that has brought me here,” Modi, who arrived here earlier in the day, said while addressing workers at their residential complex.
“Your happiness is my happiness and when you are not happy, I also feel the pain,” he said.
Modi told the workers that India has the kind of manpower that the world needs today.
“When, in times to come, people will see the work you have done, you will realise the importance of your efforts,” he said.
Modi also highlighted the various steps taken by his government to protect Indian workers abroad.
“There are forums like MyGov and Narendra Modi Mobile App through which you can reach me and I can communicate with you,” he said.
He promised more Indian worker resource centres and a second 24/7 call centre.
“Political stability was behind the economic growth story of India,” Modi said while addressing a function of Indian businessman.
“In a very short span of time, India has once again given rise to new expectations at the world stage,” he said.
Indians in Saudi Arabia send home $10 billion (Dh36.72 billion) in remittances annually.
Saudi Arabia is the third and last leg of Modi’s three-nation tour which also took him to Brussels and Washington, D.C.
This is the first prime ministerial visit from India to Saudi Arabia since the visit of Manmohan Singh in 2010.
