Britain’s Prince William and Kate to visit India for Earthshot Prize, meet PM Modi in Delhi

New Delhi: Britain’s crown prince, William, and his wife, Catherine, the princess of Wales, will begin a three-day official visit to India on Monday with climate innovation, sustainable development and the expanding India-United Kingdom partnership at the centre of their engagements. The royal couple will attend the sixth Earthshot Prize awards ceremony in Mumbai before travelling to New Delhi for a meeting with the prime minister, Narendra Modi, on November 18.

The visit, their second official trip to India, comes as the two countries seek to deepen cooperation in clean energy, technology, trade and investment following the implementation of their landmark free trade agreement in July. The programme will also highlight connections between Indian and British society through cricket, cinema, fashion and initiatives involving young people.

Mumbai will host the Earthshot Prize awards on November 17, bringing together environmental innovators, business leaders, investors and prominent figures from entertainment and sport. Founded by William in 2020, the initiative identifies practical solutions to major environmental problems and provides financial support to help successful projects expand their operations.

Fifteen finalists have been selected for this year’s competition, with five winners set to receive £1 million each to develop and scale their innovations. The awards cover five areas – protecting and restoring nature, improving air quality, reviving oceans, reducing waste and addressing climate change.

India has emerged as an important contributor to the competition, having produced more finalists and winners than any other country since the initiative began. According to Earthshot’s organizers, Indian participants have secured seven finalist places and four awards, reflecting the country’s growing involvement in environmental innovation across agriculture, energy, waste management and air quality.

The Mumbai ceremony will feature several prominent personalities, including cricket legend Sachin Tendulkar, actors Alia Bhatt and Sonam Kapoor, and singer Shreya Ghoshal. Filmmaker Karan Johar will host the event, which will also feature British pop group Take That, actor Rami Malek and other international performers.

Climate cooperation and India-UK economic ties

Beyond the awards ceremony, the royal programme will examine how India’s emerging technologies and urban initiatives are addressing environmental challenges. Planned engagements include sustainable public transport, responsible manufacturing and youth-led environmental projects, alongside interactions illustrating Mumbai’s role as a centre for business, innovation and creative industries.

William is also expected to participate in an engagement involving gully cricket and experience Mumbai’s Metro network, highlighting both the sport’s cultural influence and the city’s investment in mass transit. Catherine’s engagements will include a hospital visit, while the couple’s broader itinerary will draw attention to India’s film and fashion industries.

The visit also provides an opportunity to reinforce the wider bilateral relationship under India-UK Vision 2035, which seeks to strengthen cooperation in areas ranging from economic growth and clean energy to education, technology and security. Climate action forms an important part of that agenda, with both governments emphasizing the need to combine environmental protection with investment, industrial development and employment generation.

The India-UK Comprehensive Economic and Trade Agreement, signed on July 24, 2025, entered into force on July 15 this year, marking a major development in economic relations between the two countries. The agreement aims to reduce trade barriers and expand market access for goods and services, creating opportunities for businesses and investors in both economies.

The British government has estimated that bilateral trade could increase by £25.5 billion annually in the long term as a result of the agreement. British officials see the royal visit as an opportunity to draw attention to commercial and technological partnerships, particularly in sectors where environmental innovation can create new markets.

In a statement announcing the visit, the acting British high commissioner to India said the partnership’s future would depend not only on cooperation between governments but also on the relationships developed by businesses, researchers and citizens. The British mission emphasized that the programme would celebrate these connections while showcasing advances in clean energy, technology, investment and education.

The British trade commissioner for South Asia, Harjinder Kang, described Mumbai as an appropriate setting for discussions on sustainable economic development, citing the city’s capacity to develop and expand innovative solutions. He said the implementation of the trade agreement had created fresh opportunities for the two countries to translate climate-related initiatives into commercial activity and long-term growth.

Delhi meeting to conclude royal visit

William and Catherine are scheduled to conclude their India visit in New Delhi on November 18, where they will meet Modi. The engagement will take place against the backdrop of expanding bilateral cooperation in trade, technology, clean energy and security, although the British announcement did not specify a detailed agenda for their discussions.

The trip will also mark a significant return to overseas royal engagements for Catherine, who underwent cancer treatment in 2024 and subsequently resumed public duties in stages. Her participation in the India programme is particularly notable because it will be her first major long-haul overseas royal visit since her diagnosis.

The couple previously visited India in April this year, undertaking engagements in Mumbai, New Delhi and other locations during a tour that also included Bhutan. A decade later, their return comes at a different point in bilateral relations, with economic cooperation, technological development and climate policy occupying a more prominent place in the partnership.

For India, hosting the Earthshot Prize represents an opportunity to present domestic environmental innovations to international investors and institutions capable of helping them expand. For Britain, the royal visit offers a high-profile platform to reinforce a relationship that increasingly extends beyond traditional diplomatic and cultural connections into trade, sustainability and emerging technologies.