London, Nov. 16: UK PM Rishi Sunak has given the go-ahead for 3,000 visas for young Indian professionals to live and work in the country each year.

The British government said India is the first visa-national country to benefit from such a scheme, highlighting the strength of the UK-India Migration and Mobility Partnership agreed last year.

As per the Prime Minister's Office statement, “I know first-hand the incredible value of the deep cultural and historic ties we have with India. I am pleased that even more of India’s brightest young people will now have the opportunity to experience all that life in the UK has to offer – and vice-versa - making our economies and societies richer."

"Today the UK-India Young Professionals Scheme was confirmed, offering 3,000 places to 18-30-year-old degree-educated Indian nationals to come to the UK to live and work for up to two years," the UK Prime Minister's Office said in a tweet.

This announcement in the Downing Street readout came hours after Sunak met Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi on the sidelines of the 17th edition of the G20 Summit. This was their first meeting after the first Indian-origin British PM assumed office last month.

"Prime Ministers @narendramodi and @RishiSunak in conversation during the first day of the @g20org Summit in Bali," PM Modi's Office said in a tweet.-Agencies