Chennai ,Jan 31 (IANS): Tamil Nadu Chief Minister MK Stalin who is on an eight day visit to Spain said that there were similarities between the Tamil and Spanish languages. He stated that jallikattu of Tamil Nadu was similar to the bill fighting of Spain and added that there were cultural similarities between the people of the two places.

The Chief Minister's Office in a statement on Wednesday said that Stalin was speaking at a function in Madrid for wooing investments for Tamil Nadu on Tuesday evening.

Stalin while speaking at the ‘Tamil Nadu Investors First Port of Call’ event in Madrid, commenced his speech in Spanish before switching to Tamil.

He told the gathering he was visiting Spain for the first time and was charmed by its beauty.

Stalin said that he was proud of the Tamil language and jallikattu and added that the Spanish language was the second largest language in the world and Spain a land of bull tamers.

He invited Spaniards to visit the jallikattu stadium in Tamil Nadu, and said, ”Spain and Tamil Nadu have a great similarity in conducting bull sport. Bullfighting is the national sport of Spain while jallikattu is a traditional sport in Tamil Nadu, and is a symbol of its culture.”

Stalin said that Tamil Nadu was an investment destination and cited the examples of more than 130 Fortune 500 companies who have established their units in the state.

He stressed on the prominence of Tamil Nadu in the manufacturing sector, including vehicles, electric vehicles, electronic devices, leather goods, non-leather footwear, garments, IT, renewable energy, and specialised medical services.

The CM invited Spanish investors to explore opportunities in the existing sectors and emerging fields like aerospace, defence, biotechnology, drugs, food processing, desalination and water treatment in his state.

The Chief Minister said that the state would ensure skilled manpower along with a business-friendly environment and special incentives under various policies to the investors.

Stalin had in his earlier visits to the UAE, Singapore and Japan brought investments of around Rs 8000 crores for the state and is expecting huge investments from Spain also.

He is scheduled to travel to the US and Australia later this year to attend investment summits.