India is celebrating its 80th Independence Day today as it looks to the future, building on deep ties with Bahrain that stretch back more than 5,000 years.
With bilateral trade approaching $2 billion, Bahrain and India are expanding their partnership in key cultural, strategic and economic fields.
Bilateral trade during the previous fiscal year reached $1.66bn, with India ranking among Bahrain’s top five trading partners.
Bahrain imported engineering goods worth $201.7 million, electronic goods worth $157.3m, petroleum products worth $105.3m, gems and jewellery worth $93.4m and rice worth $60m and meat, dairy and poultry worth $51.7m from India. Bahrain exported petroleum products worth $102.59m to India.
Bilateral investments between the two countries have increased by 71 per cent since 2019.
From Q4 2024 to Q4 2025, investment from India to Bahrain increased by $174m, bringing the total value of two-way investments to $2.21bn in financial services, real estate, hospitality, health, IT and education.
Indian investments in Bahrain account for $2.02bn while Bahrain has invested $187m in India.
The main sectors of Bahrain’s investment in India are real estate, IT and engineering.
The Fifth High Joint Commission (HJC) between India and Bahrain took place in November last year in New Delhi.
The HJC was co-chaired by Indian External Affairs Minister Dr Subrahmanyam Jaishankar and Bahrain Foreign Minister Dr Abdullatif Al Zayani.
It included a comprehensive review of bilateral ties spanning defence, regional security, trade, fintech, space and culture.
Both nations issued a joint condemnation of terrorism in all forms, emphasising intelligence sharing and cybersecurity co-operation, and also aligned closely on maritime security, firmly opposing any obstruction to the Strait of Hormuz. Agreements were also set in motion to develop terms for a formal Double Taxation Avoidance Agreement (DTAA).
The joint working group on trade and investment was established to operationalise institutional private-sector co-operation between Bahrain’s Economic Development Board (EDB), Mumtalakat and Indian trade bodies.
In February this year, officials from Bahrain’s Industry and Commerce Ministry met virtually with Indian commerce ministry officials during the second meeting of the trade and investment joint working group.
According to the Indian Embassy, the most recent data received from Bahrain shows that the kingdom is home to 38 Indian commercial agencies, 32 branches of large Indian companies and more than 7,500 Indian-owned and joint venture companies registered in Bahrain.
Meanwhile, Indian Justice Minister Arjun Ram Meghwal visited Bahrain in November last year for the King Hamad Lecture Ceremony and Future of International Commercial Courts Conference, discussing ways to deepen legal co-operation. On the sidelines of his visit, he met His Royal Highness Prince Salman bin Hamad Al Khalifa, Crown Prince and Prime Minister, to discuss bilateral ties and joint collaboration.
He also visited the Bahrain Chamber for Dispute Resolution (BCDR) and the Council for International Dispute Resolution to exchange judicial best practices.
Earlier this year, the Indian Navy assumed command of the Bahrain-headquartered Combined Task Force 154 (CTF-154) within the Combined Maritime Force.
A contingent of 10 Indian Navy personnel is deployed as a part of the Indian command of CTF-154, which leads maritime security training programmes across the Middle East to help partner nations build operational capabilities.
The Indian community in Bahrain remains the largest expatriate demographic in the kingdom, with more than 300,000 Indians calling Bahrain home.
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