New Delhi: The News9 Global Summit has begun in Germany’s Stuttgart. The Day 1 of the Summit will focus on boosting India-Germany relations. The theme for this year’s summit is ‘Democracy, Demography, Development – The India–Germany Connect’. The goal of the Summit is to boost economic, strategic and cultural relations between India and Germany.
The News9 Global Summit is witnessing participation of some of the top voices from the political and business fields. These include the Maharashtra CM Devendra Fadnavis, Winfried Kretschmann, Anurag Thakur, Maroš Šefčovič, and many others. The focus of the sessions will be trade development, investments and long term co-operations between India and Germany.
Baden Württemberg-Maharashtra partnership
The partnership between Stuttgart and Mumbai started as a sister-city agreement. The partnership soon turned out to be one of the most productive sub-national partnerships in the India-Germany corridor. Maharashtra CM Devendra Fadnavis and Minister-President of Baden-Württemberg (BW) Winfried Kretschmann will address the Summit and talk stock of a decade of cross-border collaboration which involves mobility, urban innovation, and manufacturing.
Both BW-Maharashtra actively invest in smart infrastructure and climate-resilient development. Addressing the News9 Global Summit, Maharashtra CM Devendra Fadnavis greeted the TV9 Network and congratulated MD & CEO Barun Das. He started his address by calling the News9 Global Summit an extended platform to further deepen India and Germany’s partnership.
The CM said, “Under the visionary leadership of our honourable Prime Minister Narendra Modi, this relationship has grown stronger, evolving from that of trade to that of true collaboration aimed at building the industries of the future. Whether it is green hydrogen, smart mobility, digital innovation or skill development, our cooperation spans across sectors vital to the global economy. Germany brings engineering excellence and precision. India offers scale, youthful energy and world class digital infrastructure.”
He further said, “A pivotal step in this journey is the ongoing India-EU free trade agreement which holds great promise for job creation, innovation and resilient supply chains. With 1.9 billion people between us, this partnership could become one of the world’s most significant economic bridge with Germany playing a central role. Nowhere else could this partnership be more tangible than Maharashtra and Baden-Württemberg. Since becoming sister states in 2015, we have built a vibrant relationship rooted in opportunity, trust and shared vision.”
CM Fadnavis added that Baden-Württemberg is a global leader in automotive and engineering innovation while Maharashtra stands as India’s industrial engine with a robust manufacturing base, a thriving service sector and a booming startup ecosystem.
He added, “Pune often called the gateway for German investment in India is home to one in every five German companies in the country. This is a clear reflection of our synergy. Maharashtra contributes nearly 14% to India’s GDP and leads in industrial output and foreign direct investment. In 2024 alone, we attracted $20 billion in FDI, 31% of the national total, thus reaffirming our position as a top investment destination.”
Our policies made investment smooth: Maharashtra CM
“Our investor-friendly initiatives like the Maha-Parvana single window clearance system make investing smooth and transparent. German companies such as Mercedes-Benz, BMW, Volkswagen and Siemens have made Maharashtra their Indian home, powering innovation and creating high quality jobs. for Mumbai’s financial ecosystem to our world class industrial corridors, ports, digital infrastructure and focus on sustainability,” said the CM.
The CM also gave a message to his German counterparts and said that Maharashtra will be Germany’s partner in growth and innovation and long-term success. “Let us walk this path together towards a brighter shared future. I wish the News9 Global Summit Germany a great success,” CM Fadnavis said.