India and Indonesia partners in good and bad times: PM Modi

New Delhi, Nov 15:  Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Tuesday said that both India and Indonesia have been partners in good and bad times and also have shared legacies and culture.

Addressing a gathering of the Indian diaspora in Bali, he said that in 2018, when Indonesia was affected by an earthquake, India immediately started operation Samudra Maitri.

"That year (2018) when I came to Jakarta, I had said that India and Indonesia may be 90 nautical miles apart, but in reality, we are not 90 nautical miles apart but 90 nautical miles close," he said.

Invoking the Ram temple which is coming up in Ayodhya, Modi said: "At a time when the grand Ram Temple is taking shape in India, we also proudly remember the Ramayana tradition of Indonesia."

The Prime Minister further said that India is a ray of hope for the world in the 21st century, adding that "today's India doesn't think small. Today India is doing work at unprecedented scale and speed".

Modi further added that a few months back India celebrated its 75th Independence Day on August 15, while Indonesia's Independence Day falls on August 17.

"But Indonesia was fortunate to attain independence two years before India. There is a lot that India can learn from Indonesia. But in its 75-year-old long development journey, there is a lot that India can give to Indonesia. India's talent, technology, innovation, industry have made an identity for themselves before the world. Several big companies of the world have an Indian-origin CEO," Modi added.