PM Modi Brunei Visit: Prime Minister Narendra Modi has left for Brunei tour. This is the first visit of an Indian Prime Minister to Brunei. Brunei’s 29th Sultan Hassanal Bolkiah himself had invited PM Modi. Brunei is a very important country from the point of view of India’s Act East Policy.
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Where is Brunei?
Brunei, a country smaller than Sikkim, is called Brunei Darussalam. It is a small country in South East Asia, located on the island of Borneo. Brunei is spread over a total area of 5765 square kilometres. It is so small that many states like Sikkim are bigger than it. The capital of Brunei is Bandar Seri Begawan. According to the data of the year 2023, the total population of Brunei was 455,885. Out of which around two lakh people live in the capital Bandar Seri Begawan.
How rich is the Sultan of Brunei?
Brunei has had a monarchy since the 14th century. Currently, Haji Hassanal Bolkiah is the Sultan of Brunei. He has been on the throne of the Sultan since 1967. When the British left here in 1984, Bolkiah also became the Prime Minister. Brunei may be one of the smallest countries in the world, but Sultan Bolkiah is counted among the richest people in the world. Till 1980, he was the richest person in the world. According to Forbes, Bolkiah has assets worth more than Rs 1.4 lakh crore. Most of the Sultan’s income comes from oil and natural gas reserves.
The owner of the world’s largest palace
Sultan Hassanal Bolkiah of Brunei lives in the world’s largest palace. His palace ‘Istana Nurul Iman’ is counted among the world’s most expensive and luxurious palaces. This palace spread over 20 lakh square feet was built in the year 1984 and at that time its cost was about 50 thousand rupees. Istana Nurul Iman has a dome of 22 carat gold. It has 1700 rooms, more than 250 bathrooms and five swimming pools. More than two hundred vehicles can be parked simultaneously.
The Sultan of Brunei wns 700 cars and a gold jet
The Sultan of Brunei is known for his lavish lifestyle all over the world. He is fond of everything from luxury cars to horses. There are about 200 horses in his stable. Apart from this, he has more than 700 luxury cars. Which includes 300 Ferraris and about 500 Rolls-Royces. Their value has been estimated to be more than 5 billion dollars. Sultan Bolkiah travels in a Boeing 747 aircraft, which costs more than Rs 3000 crore. This private plane is covered with gold.
Punishment of stoning for gay relations
Brunei is a staunch Islamic country. In the year 2014, it adopted strict Islamic Sharia law. Under the law, there is a provision of amputation of hands and feet to death penalty for crimes ranging from adultery to theft. In the year 2019, Brunei passed a law. Under which a rule was made to kill by stoning for adultery and gay relations. This law was also criticized a lot at the international level.
Why is Brunei important for India?
Brunei may be a small country, but it has large reserves of oil and natural gas. Its economy also runs on this. India has invested about 270 million dollars in Brunei’s hydrocarbon industry. Both countries are trying to increase cooperation from space technology to health sector. Strategic experts say that Brunei is very important for India from the diplomatic point of view. Especially in the Indo-Pacific region, Brunei’s support is very important to counter China. Its border touches the northern South China Sea, where it has been in dispute with China.
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