Trudeau heads to India next month

Prime Minister Justin Trudeau is heading to India next month for a state visit.

At the invitation ofIndia's Prime Minister Narendra Modi, Trudeau will make stops in Agra, Amritsar, Ahmedabad, Mumbai, and New Delhibetween Feb. 17-23, says the Prime Minister's Office.

During his tour he will also visitthe Taj Mahal, Sri Harmandir Sahib also known as theGolden Temple and the Swaminarayan Akshardham temple in Gujarat duringhis tour.

Trudeau will meetwith Modi, and take part severalbusiness roundtables focused on boosting trade and investment between the two countries.

Trudeau willpromote empowering women and girls andstrengthening Canada and India's economic ties, says his office.

"Canada and India share a special bond, and are linked by tremendous people-to-people connections. The more than one million Canadians of Indian origin make the relationship between our two countries a truly special one," he said in a statement.

Trudeau also meet with students, says the government announcement.

International Trade Minister Franois-Philippe Champagne and Innovation Minister Navdeep Bains wrapped up a trip to India in November, the eleventh ministerial trip since the fall of 2016.

The Liberal government has tried to diversify Canada's trading options, with recent trips to China, Vietnam and thePhilippines.