The Vietnam Union of Friendship Organisations (VUFO) hosted a get-together in Hanoi on October 4 in honour of Shantanu Srivastava, Chairman of ASSOCHAM India-ASEAN Business Promotion Council, who has maintained a 30-year friendship with Vietnam.

VUFO Chairman Vu Xuan Hong expressed sincere thanks to the Indian businessman for all what he has done for the friendly and cooperative ties between the two countries.

Shantanu Srivastava first came to Vietnam as a diplomat, and after ending his tenure here, he chose to work in business in order to have more opportunities to stay close to the Southeast Asian country, which he considers his second homeland. The Managing Director and CEO of Ishan International Pvt. Ltd has played an important role in the establishment of the Indian Chamber of Commerce (INCHAM) in Vietnam .

The Indian businessman, who has lived in Vietnam for the past 30 years, is also active in social activities. He has raised funds to build 20 houses for the poor in Ho Chi Minh City ’s Can Gio district and present scholarships to poor local students. In addition, Shantanu Srivastava has assisted the development of Vietnam ’s railway, textile and tea industries through the provision of machineries and the building of a textile dyeing laboratory.

At present, he sponsors the establishment of Vietnam Houses in the Indian capital New Delhi and the west coast city of Mumbai .

Shantanu Srivastava, who was conferred the Friendship Order of Vietnam in 2003 and the insignia For Peace and Friendship among Nations in 2006, said he has some new ideas for the cooperation between the two countries that he plans to discuss with the VUFO.

The businessman suggested a programme to encourage Vietnamese companies to open representative offices in India, joint research on India’s traditional medical treatment, the opening of Hindu training courses in Vietnam and Vietnamese training courses in India, as well as schemes to improve access to education and health care for children of poor workers in Vietnam.-VNA