PM mixes pleasure with business

Prime Minister John Key and his wife Bronagh succumb to the magic of the Taj Mahal. Photo / NZPA

It's one of the world's greatest monuments to love and even an early monsoon downpour could not dampen its romance.

Prime Minister John Key and wife Bronagh snatched a kiss for the cameras in front of the Taj Mahal on the first day of Mr Key's visit to India to discuss a free trade agreement.

Had the monsoon run to as tight a schedule as Mr Key's visit to India, it would have arrived the day he left.

Alas, despite all the meticulous planning, the blocking of roads for motorway convoys and the royal treatment that a state visit entails, the monsoon arrived three days early and simultaneously with Mr Key.

It was of great joy to those living in New Delhi after a week of sweltering humidity and dust that covered the city in a bizarrely beautiful glow.

Mr Key's arrival did not warrant a mention in the major newspapers. But the arrival of the monsoon was front page news as it "rained magic over the capital".

It did bring cooler temperatures of 25C to 30C instead of the expected 40C. But it also meant it was a late and slightly damp Mr Key who toured the Taj Mahal in Agra after the plane was delayed by cloud.

Clearly impressed by the monument of love that the Mughal emperor Shah Jahan built for his wife in 1638, he joked that his own beloved need not expect such treatment - not least because he doubted Finance Minister Bill English would approve.

Unlike many tourists before him, he was given the run of the palace, which was closed to the public for his visit.

Mr Key used the first day of his visit to announce New Zealand would continue to stick to its support for nuclear disarmament as it negotiates a free trade agreement with India.

Mr Key will meet Indian Prime Minister Manmohan Singh today and expected the free trade agreement to dominate discussions.

He said free trade agreements did not necessarily mean the parties had to agree on everything, as the agreement with China showed.

It was the second visit to India for Mr Key, who visited briefly in 1995 as an investment banker. It is also the first visit since former Prime Minister Helen Clark travelled to India in 2004.