21

Nov

Modi-Trudeau Exchange of Pleasantries Not Enough To Bridge the Gulf

image

Prabhjot Singh

A person wearing a red turban Description automatically generated

Toronto, Canada | Thursday | 21 November 2024

The pleasantries exchanged by Indian and Canadian Prime Ministers at the just-concluded G20 summit in Rio de Janeiro may not be enough to provide any respite from the growing bitterness in bilateral relations between the two once-friendly nations. The gulf between New Delhi and Ottawa has been widened further with Canada announcing enhanced security measures for air passengers travelling to India from its various international airports.

The Canadian Federal Transport Minister Anita Anand, who earlier held the all-important portfolio of Defence, has announced a series of measures purportedly to make commuting between the two nations “safer”. Citing the need for increased caution, she says that new measures that have become effective immediately may cause inconvenience and delay because of additional security protocols being introduced now.

All air carriers operating flights to India from Canada have been advised and told to follow the additional security screening measures. “Passengers may experience some screening delays while these measures are in place, Anita Anand said in a statement.

 

Article at a Glance
The recent G20 summit in Rio de Janeiro saw Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi and Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau exchanging pleasantries, yet underlying tensions between India and Canada continue to escalate.
Canada has announced heightened security measures for air travellers flying to India, citing safety concerns. Transport Minister Anita Anand indicated that these new protocols, which include additional screening and inspections, aim to enhance passenger safety but may lead to delays.
This move follows a series of bomb hoaxes affecting flights from India, raising alarms about aviation security. The strained relations have been exacerbated by diplomatic disputes, including the expulsion of diplomats and accusations between the two nations.
While there were hopes for a productive meeting at the G20, the interactions remained superficial, leaving the future of bilateral relations uncertain amid ongoing security concerns and political tensions.

It is not the first time that enhanced security protocol has been introduced for passengers travelling to India. Last year when the Sikhs for Justice gave a call to Sikhs to boycott Air India flights, both Air India and the Canadian Air Transport Security Authority (CATSA) took the call seriously and introduced multi-tier screening of passengers before boarding India-bound flights.

With the latest announcement, the CATSA, as mandated, would oversee additional screening of both baggage and passengers. The new measures would include x-ray screening of carry-on luggage, physical inspections of passengers and increased use of handheld swabs to detect traces of prohibited substances in the wear of air passengers  to their great discomfort and long delays

The enhancement in security protocols, believe aviation experts, has been necessitated by the recent incidents including the diversion of an Air India flight from Delhi to Chicago to Iqaluit. The flight was threatened with a “bomb” being planted on the aircraft. The call, however, turned out to be a hoax. It raised an alarm about aviation safety.

Incidentally, this “bomb hoax” was not an isolated incident of its type. Many air carriers in India, operating both in domestic and international sectors, went through an unprecedented series of such “bomb hoax” calls during the past couple of months that impacted several hundred flights causing the air passengers to lot of inconvenience, delays and anguish. Though the Indian Ministry of Civil Aviation and the Bureau of Aviation Security took all the calls seriously, the menace could not be effectively controlled even after several weeks. Air India, Indigo and some other Indian carriers have been the worst hit by this “hoax” calls campaign believed to be the brainchild of some disgruntled elements.

Though the Government of India in its latest announcement did not link its decision to any specific incident, the escalations in tensions between the two nations are also believed to be the reason for Canada’s “no risk on air security” policy after what it had undergone in 1985 during one of the worst air disasters.

After the Government of Canada in a diplomatic communique had named six Indian diplomats as “persons of interest” in the recent incidents of assaults on Canadians, the relations have continued to deteriorate with both nations following “tit for tat” policies. The expulsion of diplomats and accusations have added fuel to the fire.

Some hopes were raised that since both Prime Ministers, Narendra Modi, and Justin Trudeau, would be in Rio de Janeiro for the G20 Summit, a meeting on the sidelines may ease out tensions. Some pictures taken during the summit, especially when a group photograph of the participating heads of nations is taken, show the two Prime Ministers exchanging pleasantries. But it did not go beyond those exchanges.

***************

  • Share:

About Us

We must explain to you how all seds this mistakens idea off denouncing pleasures and praising pain was born and I will give you a completed accounts..

Contact Us

Contact Info

  • 70, Gyan Khand- 4, Indirapuram, Ghaziabad. Uttar Pradesh.
  • +91-9810533682
  • info@mediamap.co.in
  • Week Days: 09.00 to 18.00 Sunday: Closed