"Explored avenues to enhance connectivity": High Commissioner Dinesh Patnaik meets Canadian Transport Minister

Ottawa [Canada], February 24 (ANI): India and Canada are looking to deepen cooperation in the transportation sector and boost connectivity to facilitate smoother movement of people and goods, the High Commission of India in Ottawa said on Tuesday, regarding the meeting of High Commissioner Dinesh K Patnaik with the Canadian Transport Minister Steve Mackinnon.
In a post on X, the High Commision of India in Ottawa, 'India in Canada', said that Patnaik met with Mackinnon to discuss strengthening bilateral engagement in the sector.
"High Commissioner @DineshKPatnaik met with @stevemackinnon, Canadian Minister of Transport and discussed opportunities for strengthening India-Canada cooperation in transportation sector. Also explored avenues to further enhance connectivity to facilitate the mobility of people and ensure the seamless movement of import and export goods between India and Canada," the High Commission said in its X post.
https://x.com/HCI_Ottawa/status/2026050421530431751
According to the statement, the discussions focused on expanding collaboration in transportation infrastructure and improving connectivity frameworks to support growing trade and people-to-people exchanges between the two countries.
The engagement comes amid broader efforts by New Delhi and Ottawa to stabilise ties and explore practical areas of cooperation, including trade, logistics and supply chain resilience.
Earlier on Tuesday, the High Commissioner said that the relationship between Canada and India has transformed in recent months and added that Canadian Prime Minister Mark Carney's visit to India will "put a stamp" on all bilateral steps taken to "solidify" the New Delhi-Ottawa relationship, which was strained under the leadership of former Canada PM Justin Trudeau.
Noting the efforts from both sides to "reset" the relationship, Dinesh Patnaik shared that Carney's visit on February 26 will ensure increased bilateral cooperation among all sectors.
Speaking with ANI, Dinesh Patnaik said, "The Canadian relations have transformed over the last few months, especially after Prime Minister Modi visited Canada to attend the G7 Summit. Since the last four to five months, we've been working very hard to ensure that the relationship is reset to what it was before... This visit will put a stamp on all the activities that have happened to solidify the relationship and to take it to the next level," he said.
Canadian Prime Minister Mark Carney is set to visit India from February 26 to March 7, 2026, as part of a broader Indo-Pacific tour aimed at strengthening trade, energy, and strategic partnerships. During his visit, Carney will meet with Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi to discuss expanding cooperation in areas like trade, energy, technology, artificial intelligence, talent mobility, culture, and defence.
He said that we can expect agreements on various sectors such as cultural, defence, aerospace, space, energy, critical minerals, innovations, education and AI, adding, "This is a multi-dimensional relationship, and you will see all dimensions during the visit."
Noting that New Delhi and Ottawa are "complementary economies," Dinesh Patnaik said that cooperation between both countries will help India to diversify its supply chain.
"Canada and India have complementary economies. Canada has a large number of resources, including energy, agriculture, fertiliser, and critical minerals, which are part of the supply chain we are thinking of setting up. A deal with Canada would help us very much in diversifying our supply chain away from the traditional sources," he said. (ANI)