Ajay Kaul / PTI
 
Hanover, Germany, Apr 24: Seeking active involvement of Germany in India's development, Prime Minister Manmohan Singh on Sunday invited its business and industry to make investments and expand trade opportunities between the two countries.

Singh, who is in Germany on a three-day visit, also said India sought "active support" of Berlin to lend "true meaning and content" to New Delhi's Strategic Partnership with the European Union.

"India is now growing at the annual rate of eight per cent and our ambition is to raise the growth rate to 10 per cent," he said at the Hannover Town Hall 'Rathaus' where he signed the 'Golden Book', becoming one of the few world leaders to do so.

The Prime Minister said that for achieving the high growth rate, India needed "active involvement and support" of the German people.

"India seeks new investment, it seeks expanded trade opportunities, it seeks import of German technology," he said just hours before inaugurating the Hannover Trade Fair in which India is a partner and about 350 Indian companies participating.

Pointing out that German firms were already contributing enormously to India's development, he said "but we cannot be satisfied with the status quo. We seek faster, deeper and wider involvement of German business and industry for India's development."