French envoy Lenain to visit Tamil Nadu, Puducherry to boost cultural, economic ties

Ambassador of France to India Emmanuel Lenain will travel to Tamil Nadu and Puducherry on a three-day visit focused on deepening Indo-French business, cultural and people-to-people ties.

Ambassador of France to India Emmanuel Lenain will travel to Tamil Nadu and Puducherry on a three-day visit focused on deepening Indo-French business, cultural and people-to-people ties. During his visit, he will meet Tamil Nadu Chief Minister MK Stalin and Puducherry Chief Minister N Rangasamy

Emmanuel Lenain will attend major cultural events specially organised by France as part of the French Rendez-vous festival taking place in Puducherry, from April 3 to 9, according to a French Embassy statement. Lenain will call on Tamil Nadu Chief Minister on April 7 in Chennai. They will discuss ways of boosting trade between France and Tamil Nadu, a state that attracts a significant share of all French investments in India and is home to over 140 French companies operating in a wide range of sectors.

The French envoy will also hold a meeting with Chennai Mayor Priya Rajan to present France's expertise in building sustainable, smart cities. He will reaffirm France's support to the "Model and Smart Corporation Schools" project in Chennai, which receives funding from the French Development Agency (AFD) under the CITIIS programme. He will also tour French company Saint Gobain's biggest global manufacturing plant in Sriperumbudur.

Its latest float glass facility at the World Glass Complex was recently inaugurated by the state Chief Minister. "Saint Gobain has made investments close to Rs 4,700 crore in Tamil Nadu across 15 plants in four locations, a reflection of French companies' confidence in India's vast economic potential," the statement said. Lenain will visit Puducherry on April 8 and pay a courtesy call on Lieutenant-Governor Dr Tamilisai Soundararajan and the Chief Minister.

He will discuss ways to further strengthen the partnership between France and Puducherry in several sectors, including urban planning, heritage conservation and tourism. Lenain will take part in two cultural events organised by France as part of the second edition of "French Rendez-vous" taking place in Puducherry from April 3 to 9.

The statement said the first of these events is Puducherry-based Company Distil's presentation 'Analemma', a modern circus performance bringing together French and Indian artists. The second is the 'Orchestra of Samples' a global music project by audiovisual artists Addictive TV who, since 2010, have been recording hundreds of musicians around the world playing various instruments to create new music.

The envoy will also address a gathering of the directors and presidents of the 14 Alliance francaises in India, the second-largest such network in the world. Representatives of the Fondation des Alliances Francaises, Marc Cerdan, General Secretary, and Jean-Francois Hans, Asia Representative, will be present for the occasion.

French Rendez vous is a French cultural festival being held in Puducherry, Chennai and Trivandrum with the objective of celebrating and enhancing Francophonie ties between South India and France. Lenain will also interact with software developers of the French Tech firm, Boost My Shop, which provides automated, innovative solutions to e-commerce professionals and represents one of the many Indo-French success stories in the IT sector. (ANI)

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