The Centre is planning to spend over ₹100 crores to host the US President Donald Trump in his first visit to India on February 24.
In his two-day tour starting on February 24, Trump will spend around three hours in Ahmedabad for which Ahmedabad authorities will spend ₹80 to ₹85 crores to beautify the city.
Expenditure for Donald trump visit:
The total expenditure on Trump’s visit to Gujarat is equivalent to about 1.5 per cent of the annual budget of Gujarat. More than 12000 police officers are to be deployed around the world’s largest cricket stadium – Motera, which has the capacity to host around one lakh people
Expenditure on the construction of roads and walls:
According to Ahmedabad Municipal Commissioner cited in Reuters, state authorities have spent around ₹30 crores on improving the infrastructure around the new cricket stadium where Trump is going to address one lakh people.
The Ahmedabad Municipal Commissioner noted that eighteen roads of about 20 kilometres in length from Ahmedabad airport to Motera stadium have been widened or re-laid. He, however, claimed that the government intended to improve the infrastructure even before Trump’s news of arrival surfaced.
Beautification drive in Ahmedabad for donald trump:
The civic authorities will set out on a plantation drive amounting to ₹6 crores as a part of its “beautification plan”. The authorities will plant fully grown date palms along the Sabarmati Riverfront stretch.
Another report by the Independent stated that to achieve the short-notice plan, Ahmedabad local authority has served eviction notices to people living around the area especially slum dwellers.
Overheads:
The government will spend ₹80 crores for resurfacing and constructing new roads on Trump’s route. ₹12-15 crore for security for US President. ₹7-10 crore for transport and refreshments of over one lakh guests at the inauguration of Motera stadium. ₹6 crores for the beautification of the city including exotic flowers.
Spike in room tariffs:
Star category hotels in Ahmedabad and Gandhinagar witness a steep hike in room tariffs by 30-50 per cent following the announcement of the mega event
Trump’s arrival comes amidst souring trade relations between India and the US. hinting his dissatisfaction over US-India trade ties, Trump said to media, “We’re not treated very well by India but I happen to like Modi a lot.”
US INDIA TRADE DEAL:
US President Donald Trump has said that he was saving the big trade deal with India for later. This indicates that an ambitious India-US trade package, which the two sides have been working on for some time, can be ruled out during his India visit later this month.
“Well, we can have a trade deal with India, but I’m really saving the big deal for later on. We’re doing a very big trade deal with India. We’ll have it. I don’t know if it’ll be done before the election, but we’ll have a very big deal with India,” Trump said, answering questions from the media before taking off for a four-day trip to the West Coast on Tuesday. The US Presidential election will be held in November.
US wishlist:
The US has a big wish-list for the proposed trade pact, ranging from no price caps on medical equipment and greater market access for dairy products to zero import duties on mobile phones, motorbikes and high-end IT products as well as lower tariffs on farm goods.
India, on the other hand, wants full restoration of Generalised System of Preferences (GSP) benefits for its exporters, greater export of agricultural produce and a roll-back of penal duties on its steel and aluminium.
Although the donald Trump regime has been criticising India for not doing enough to bring down the trade imbalance between the two countries, New Delhi’s decision to buy oil and gas from Washington has put a dent in the deficit. In 2018-19, India’s exports to the US stood at $52.4 billion, while imports were at $35.5 billion. The trade deficit narrowed from $21.3 billion in 2017-18 to $16.9 billion in 2018-19.
