than in many other Asian countries. Most Chinese companies consider the Indian regulatory regime opaque at best - and hostile at worst - despite the Indian government's welcoming noises.

During his tenure as chief minister of Gujarat since October 2001, Narendra Modi has already played a key role in the bilateral relationship between India and China. As one of the few state-level politicians in India to have been hosted by the ruling Chinese Communist Party, he has nurtured a mutually beneficial relationship at the highest levels.

The US government's refusal to grant a visa to Modi over the last few years has also played the role of an invisible hand propelling Modi firmly in China's direction.

Not surprisingly, Gujarat and Modi's key constituents have benefited enormously from Chinese investment and loans.Chinese companies big and small have come to view Gujarat as India's answer to Guangdong province, from where a cluster of boom towns catalyzed economic prosperity in the Middle Kingdom couple of decades ago.

In January 2010, when Gujarati diamond traders were arrested in China, the Indian government's efforts at freeing them failed to bear fruit for almost two years. It was only after Modi's visit to China that they were freed in December 2011.

The Indian establishment has been crying hoarse for Chinese investment in infrastructure for several years now, but there has been barely a trickle in response. China's lukewarm response can perhaps be attributed to India's labyrinth of labor and land acquisition laws.

Despite this, after Modi emerged as a prime ministerial candidate in September 2013, the Chinese