Japan expanding ties with Karnataka, India
Japan Airlines to operate daily direct flight between Narita and Bangalore from March 2020
The Ambassador of Japan to India Kenji Hiramatsu met the Chief Minister of Karnataka H.D. Kumaraswamy yesterday in Bangalore to discuss the deepening relationship between Japan and Karnataka.
Chief Minister H.D. Kumaraswamy welcomed the Ambassador emphasizing the strengthened ties between India and Japan. He highlighted that many Japanese companies have expanded their businesses in Bangalore and the expectation is to further strengthen the relations between the two countries in the future. In response, Ambassador Hiramatsu mentioned that Japan Airlines will operate a daily direct flight between Narita and Bangalore from March 2020 and he expressed his hopes to boost the association of Japan with Karnataka. Views on expanding tourism between Japan and India were also discussed.
Ambassador Hiramatsu and Chief Minister Kumaraswamy exchanged views on various matters like Bangalore’s infrastructure challenges including the traffic problems, expansion of Japanese industries and challenges of the Japan Industrial Township, cooperation in the fields of IT and startup, popularising Japanese language education and more.
Japan Airlines (JAL) had announced that it will launch a new nonstop service between Tokyo-Narita and Bangalore India, during the summer of 2020. As direct flights are currently not in service from Japan, the launch of this route will provide customers from North America a new option when traveling to the southern region of India. And, through the expansion of JAL`s international network, the carrier looks to contribute to the further development and economic growth in both countries.
In order to realise the JAL Vision, as introduced in the JAL Group Medium Term Management Plan *, the carrier will continue expanding its network in order to become the world’s most valued and preferred airline.
“The launch of non-stop flights from Bangalore to Tokyo (Narita) will herald a new era of more strengthened economic relation between Karnataka and Japan. With this development not only will tourism flourish in Karnataka & Japan but also many new businesses will be established; thereby creating lots of new opportunities,” said Consul-General Takayuki Kitagawa. “The new flight service will enable people to travel not just to Tokyo but also to many cities in the US easily. Once the Silicon Valley of India and US is connected, we can probably expect Tokyo to become the next Silicon Valley, too, since professionals related to Silicon Valley innovation such as start-ups, venture capitals, scientists, engineers etc. may stop over more frequently in Tokyo. This flight service is more than a win-win, it is a triple win situation for India, Japan and the US.”
The Consulate-General office will continue to organise events like Cosplay Walk, Japan Habba, Japan Food Fest etc. and will also promote the Banga Roll Sushi worldwide to increase the influx of more visitors to Bangalore. Also, with the recent relaxation of visa norms from January, the new flight service is bound to see a huge increase in Indian visitors from Bangalore to Japan.
