Washington: Mr Barack Obama's trip to India next month would be his longest stay overseas in a country as US President, which reflects the importance he attaches to building strategic relationship between the two largest democratic countries of the world.

Mr Obama is expected to travel to India in the first half of November, the schedule of which has not been announced yet.

Inkling the length of his stay in India came from Assistant Secretary of State for South and Central Asia, Mr Robert Blake, in his address to the Baltimore Council on Foreign Affairs.

Mr Obama's India visit "will mark his longest stay anywhere outside the USA" Mr Blake said in his speech to the Baltimore-based think tank. Informed sources in the Administration said that Mumbai is likely to be the first stop of the US President, wherein he is expected to address a business summit of American and Indian corporate leaders besides attending events commemorating 26/11 on 6 November.

Mr Obama is most likely to travel to Amritsar and visit the sacred Golden Temple on 7 November for a day trip and reach New Delhi the same night. His official meetings with Prime Minister Dr Manmohan Singh, are believed to have been scheduled for 8 November.

"I don't want to scoop the President, and since we're still in the planning stages for a large number of big-ticket items, I don't want to jump the gun," Mr Blake said. "But I can give you the broad outline of how we envision the visit will frame the strong US -India partnership, and how specifically this holds great benefits for Americans," he said in his speech.

"As we work with our Indian friends to plan for the President's visit, I'd like to address the three cross-cutting themes that will illustrate the breadth, depth and promise of our partnership.

First, the visit will illustrate how India's economic rise has created new opportunities for mutually beneficial economic partnerships between our two knowledge-based economies," Mr Blake said. "Thinking about the emergence of developing powers, be they India, China, Brazil or even Turkey, tends to focus on how the growth of these nations could adversely affect economic conditions here in the USA. But a recent study by India's Federation of Indian Chambers of Commerce and Industry showed that Indian firms are investing almost as much here in the USA as their American counterparts are in India," he said.

During 2004-09, 90 Indian companies made 127 greenfield investments worth US$5.5 billion (S$7.1 billion), and created over 16,000 jobs in the United States. During that same period, 239 Indian companies made 372 acquisitions in the USA, Mr Blake said.

For those deals for which we know the worth, the total value was US$21 billion, or US$78.7 million per acquisition. And for only 85 transactions for which the study could find the information, Indian acquisitions saved or created over 40,000 jobs, he said. Mr Blake said USA and Indian government are now working to lay the groundwork for increased regulatory harmonisation and collaboration that will permit our bio-tech industries to flourish.