INTERVIEW
India’s new Ambassador to Bahrain takes charge Division, and Joint Secretary/ Head of BIMSTEC and SAARC Division at the Ministry of External Affairs, New Delhi. He has also served as Joint Secretary at Indian Council of World Affairs, a premier think tank of India. He speaks Hindi, English and German languages. Ambassador Srivastava holds B. Tech. and M. Tech. degrees from Indian Institute of Technology (IIT) Kanpur. He is married to Monika Srivastava and they have one son. On the eve of Indian Independence Day, Ambassador Srivastava spoke to Salaam Bahrain:
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mbassador Piyush Srivastava joined as Ambassador of India to Bahrain on 28 July 2020. Prior to his current assignment, he was serving as Joint Secretary/ Head of Northern Division at Ministry of External Affairs, New Delhi. Ambassador Srivastava joined the Indian Foreign Service in 1998. He began his diplomatic career in the Embassy of India, Berlin. Thereafter he served as Second Secretary/ First Secretary at the Indian High Commission in Ghana; and as First Secretary/ Counsellor in charge of Political, Development Cooperation, Press, Information and Culture at Indian Embassy in Bhutan. Ambassador Srivastava has also served as Counsellor/ Deputy Chief of Mission at Embassy of India, Nepal. During his tenure as Deputy Chief of Mission at Indian Embassy in Kathmandu, he coordinated India’s relief and rescue efforts for Nepal following the massive earthquake that struck Nepal in 2015. At Headquarters, Mr. Piyush Srivastava has worked in divisions dealing with countries in India’s neighbourhood and extended neighbourhood. His assignments included Deputy Secretary (Afghanistan/ Iran), Director in Southern 8
SB: You have taken charge in Bahrain at a time when the community is looking to the embassy for solutions in managing the challenges it faces due to the pandemic. How would you say the COVID crisis alters your role as a diplomat? PS: The historic and civilisational ties between India and Bahrain have, in modern times, been further strengthened and diversified in all spheres viz. political, economic, security, social and cultural. The large and vibrant Indian community of Bahrain plays an important role in promoting our deeprooted bilateral ties. It will be my endeavour to further strengthen and diversify the age-old bonds of friendship and cooperation between our two countries, and to ensure the welfare of the Indian community in Bahrain. COVID-19 pandemic has presented unprecedented challenges before the world. It has been a priority of the Government of India to ensure well-being of our people abroad. The Embassy, in close consultation with our community representatives/members, has tirelessly worked to assist and resolve the problems faced by the Indian community. I thank the leadership of the Kingdom of Bahrain for all cooperation and support extended in this regard. We would continue efforts towards
SALAAM BAHRAIN | August | 2020
mitigating the impact of COVID-19 on the Indian community members and to effectively address the issues being faced by them in these difficult times. Though the restrictions imposed by COVID 19 such as social distancing may not allow me to freely interact with our community at this point in time, I would like to assure everybody that through the use of digital technology, we remain in constant touch with the members of Indian community to ensure their wellbeing and welfare. SB: It is early days of course, but would you care to share with us your first impressions of Bahrain? PS: I have just arrived in this beautiful country. Even during the short span of my stay here, I have felt the warmth and positivity towards India and Indians living in Bahrain, thus reflecting the closeness and depth of the bilateral relations between our two countries and people. In coming days, I look forward to meeting the leadership, government officials, business community and other concerned stakeholders of Kingdom of Bahrain to discuss ways to further strengthen and diversify our bilateral ties. Of course, both my family and I would definitely explore various magnificent tourist and cultural sites in different parts of this beautiful country. SB: Please share with us the impact of the Vande Bharat mission on Bahrain. How many flights and how many passengers have departed? There are also other flights organised privately. How is the embassy helping these groups? PS: Vande Bharat Mission is the largest such repatriation mission undertaken by the Government of India for bringing home the stranded Indians abroad in wake of COVID 19 pandemic. Under Vande Bharat mission, till date more than 52 special Air India flights have repatriated approx. 9100 Indian nationals from Bahrain. Apart from the
