Modi visit: A 'Little India' in Australia and a new consulate in Brisbane

Sydney, May 23:  Visiting Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Tuesday announced that a new consulate will be opened soon in Brisbane and thanked his Australian counterpart Anthony Albanese for renaming Harris Park in Sydney as 'Little India'.

"Friends, now that I am here with you, I want to make an announcement. The long-standing demand of the Indian community in Brisbane will now be fulfilled by opening up a new Indian consulate soon," Modi said addressing the 20,000-plus strong Indian community gathered at the Qudos Bank Arena Stadium.

He also thanked his Albanese for renaming Harris Park in Sydney as 'Little India'. "Thank you my friend Anthony," Modi told Albanese as the latter made the announcement to declare Harris Park as 'Little India' at the community event.

"I had the opportunity to welcome the Prime Minister @AlboMP ji on the Indian soil in Ahmedabad. Today he joined me in unveiling the foundation stone of 'Little India' here: PM @narendramodi," Prime Minister Modi tweeted earlier.

Home to many popular Indian eateries and retailers, Harris Park is informally referred to as 'Little India' with 45 per cent of its 5,043 residents tracing their roots to India.

The diaspora community in the western Sydney suburb had renewed calls to officially declare their area as 'Little India'.

The Indian business owners had first proposed officially naming the area Little India in 2015, believing that the title would benefit them.

As per the Australian government's website, Harris Park has a significant population of Indians and is widely known as an exceptional spot for Indian gastronomy and Indian-run small and mid-sized enterprises.