India is hopeful that its bilateral trade with China would touch would achieve the target of $ 100 billion by 2015.

A MoU was signed here on Thursday between the Gujarat State Government and TBEA Energy (India) Private in presence of the Indian Commerce and Industry Minister, Anand Sharma and the visiting Governor of Xinjiang Uygur Autonomus Region in China, Nur Bekri. The Chinese firm operating in India has proposed to attract a foreign direct investment (FDI) amounting to Rs 500 crore during first phase of the project, ‘TBEA Green Energy Park’. The project has a projected investment of Rs 2500 Crore in three phases.

Bekri has planned to invite Bollywood Industry for shooting in Xinjiang Uygur.

Sharma expressed confidence that India and China were on the course to achieve the bilateral trade target of $ 100 billion by 2015. Trade between India and China has seen exponential growth in the last few years. As per the trade statistics of DGCI&S the total trade volume has gone up from $ 2.3 billion in 2000-01 to $ 59.62 billion in 2010-11 (April-March).

However, the Indian Minister raised the issue of Indian concern for the trade deficit. Trade deficit for the Indian side has increased from $ 9.1 billion in 2006-07 to $ 20.8 billion in 2010-11. A balanced trade is needed for long term, sustainable and harmonious development of economic cooperation between the two countries.

Sharma said that the area of drugs and pharmaceuticals was an important segment of our efforts to diversify our bilateral trade basket. Both sides need to work aggressively towards removing administrative bottlenecks and overly restrictive regulatory measures, in order to boost development of all round cooperation in this area. The Indian Minister also highlighted renewable energy where Chinese Government has fixed a target of 100 GW by 2020, as another area with great potential for export from Indian side.

Both the leaders agreed that an Indian delegation should visit Xinjiang Uygur for exploring the possibilities of promoting Indian products in handicrafts, handloom and films, particularly Bollywood films which are popular in this region of China.

Bekri also met the Indian Minister for Tourism, Subodh Kant Sahai and discussed bilateral cooperation in tourism.

Nur Bekri is currently on an official visit to India with a 19-member delegation of officials and leading business people from Xinjiang Uygur. He is the special invitee of the Indian Ministry of External Affairs as a “Distinguished Person.”. India has cultural affinity with Xinjiang Uygur and the ancient Silk Route passed through this region, said the joint secretary in the Indian External Affairs Ministry, Gautam Bambawale.

Addressing a business session organised by the Confederation of Indian Industry (CII) Bekri called for building trade and investment relationship between India and Xinjiang. Uygur. Presently bilateral trade between India and Xinjiang Uygur is worth only $35 million, even as China has become the largest trading partner of India .He said that with extensive economic reforms of last three decades, Xinjiang Uygur has developed greatly and now offers huge business and investment opportunities in sectors like oil and gas, mining, agriculture, tourism, IT, pharmaceutical and biotechnology. He also called for strengthening cultural exchanges between India and Xinjiang Uygur to build people to people relationship. Xinjiang Uygur has been rapidly developing trade with central Asian countries, Russia and other bordering countries.

However, Bekri refused to comment on the ethnic clashes in Xinjiang Uygur. He said the ethnic diversity in the region following different religion were living peacefully since long.

The Founder Chairman, Manas Advisory, Ravi Bhoothalingam identified applications of IT and ITES to education, telemedical services, pharmaceuticals, dairy farming are the areas in which India can help Xinjian Uygur. He called for cooperation in the areas of tourism and science and technology . He also suggested that a direct flight to Kashi, an important industrial and commercial city of Xinjiang, could be considered to promote economic cooperation with Xinjiang Uygur, may be through a trilateral or quadrilateral arrangement with other countries of the region.