Brown says UK not same without India, Indians

Paying tributes on the eve of the 60th anniversary of India's Republic Day, British Prime Minister Gordon Brown has said Britain will not be the same "without our strong bond with India and the enormous part played by the Indian community".

In an exclusive article written for the Republic Day special edition of 'Asian Lite', a leading British Asian publication, Brown said the historic ties between Britain and India thrived in 21st century "as a partnership of equals".

"And with our destinies more closely entwined, it is a pleasure and honour for the UK to join the celebrations for Republic Day, which this year marks the 60th anniversary of the adoption of the Constitution of India and the country’s transition from a British Dominion to a republic. Britain will not be the same without our strong bond with India and the enormous part played by the Indian community", Brown wrote.

Calling India "a modern global success story," Brown said that "astonishing" pace of change, dynamism and excitement it was generating and the potential "to do great things" was a tribute to all Indians.

"For many years now our public services, professions, businesses and cultural and creative industries have been enriched by the Indian community...So Britain-India link is central to our shared prosperity and people of Indian origin here are part of very fabric of modern British society", he wrote.