PM to address Second Heads of Missions meeting today

New Delhi, Aug 24 (ANI): Prime Minister Dr. Manmohan Singh will address the conference of Heads of Indian Missions abroad here today.

Besides Prime Minister Dr. Manmohan Singh, the conference will also be addressed by External Affairs Minister S.M.Krishna, Finance Minister Pranab Mukherjee, Agriculture Minister Sharad Pawar, Commerce and Industry Minister Anand Sharma, Minister of Overseas Indian Affairs Vyalar Ravi, National Security Advisor M.K.Narayanan, Dr. Kapila Vatsyayan, MP, and other senior government ministers and officers.

The HOMs will also have an interaction with Vice President Hamid Ansari.

Various high level sessions during the conference will cover inter-alia the global financial crisis, the Indian economy and climate change.

A new feature of this year's conference will be the interactive sessions with some special topical themes. This will enable the Heads of Missions to provide the government with their own experiences gained during the last one year of implementing foreign policy in different countries and regions.

The conference will provide an opportunity for the government to give directions to the envoys on major foreign policy objectives.

This annual interaction between the Government of India and its envoys will help to ensure that the latter are well equipped to shoulder the complex responsibilities that are required to be fulfilled in a rapidly changing global environment.

This is the second such meeting, the first being in December last year in the backdrop of the 26/11 Mumbai attacks when India was on a "diplomatic offensive" against Pakistan. (ANI)