New Delhi [India], April 20 : On his visit to India, Apple chief executive officer (CEO) Tim Cook on Wednesday evening met Railway Minister Ashwini Vaishnaw at the Railway Ministry office in the national capital.
As Cook walked through the office of the Railway Ministry, he stopped to see the photograph of the Chenab Bridge right outside Vaishnaw's cabin. Seeing the photo, Cook's instant reaction was "Wow."
In a video shared by Railway Minister Vaishnaw, he could be seen explaining to the Apple CEO the significance of the Chenab bridge which is currently under construction. He told Cook that the Vande Bharat train would be running on this railway bridge by December this year.
"This bridge connects the northern state of Kashmir. And this bridge is about 30 metres taller compared to the Eiffel Tower," Vaishnaw told Cook. On this, the Apple CEO replied "Wow".
Vaishnaw further said, "Again fully designed in India, we recently commissioned the railway track over it. And by December we will be running the Vande Bharat train on this."
"Oh wow! that is special! Wow!" reacted Tim Cook.
Notably, Vande Bharat trains are one of the most ambitious projects of the Modi government with these semi-high-speed trains connecting the length and breadth of the country
"India laid about 5,000 kilometres of new tracks. 5000 kilometres of new tracks is like setting up a completely new network equivalent to what Switzerland has. Switzerland is about 5,200 kilometres. So, it is like setting up one whole new Switzerland rail line. That is the pace with which the country is working," the Railway Minister said.
Tim Cook's response was "That is amazing!"
On Wednesday evening during his meeting with the Railway Minister, the Apple CEO was presented with a special memento - a replica of the Vande Bharat train.
Taking to Twitter after the meeting, Vaishnaw said "Met with Tim Cook, CEO, Apple. Discussed deepening Apple's engagement in India across manufacturing, electronics exports, app economy, skilling, sustainability and job creation, especially for women. Jointly charting a long-term and strong relationship."
The Apple CEO met Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Wednesday. Minister of State for IT and Electronics Rajeev Chandrasekhar also met the tech giant's CEO on Wednesday. Cook expressed confidence about a long-term working relationship with India.
Tim Cook is currently in India for the launch of two Apple stores. The first was launched in Mumbai on Tuesday while the second retail store was unveiled in Delhi on Thursday.
Viewing India as its long-term market, the iPhone manufacturer has expressed interest in expansion plans, including manufacturing the latest products.
Currently, the employment strength of Apple in India stands at 1 lakh. Sources said this is expected to go up to 2 lakh in the coming years.
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