Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi may visit Gulf states this year, media reports said.

With the diaspora outreach being a key element of the new government's policy, the Gulf states are a priority for the government, said a report in the Economic Times.

The visit is likely to cover more than one country in the Gulf and the list includes the UAE, Bahrain and Oman, the paper said.

India's spokesperson at the ministry of external affairs Syed Akbaruddin, however, said that no schedule has been finalised but the choice of visit could be more than one country as and when the PM makes the trip.

The government has quietly worked on expanding economic and political opportunities with the Gulf states, it noted.

External Affairs Minister Sushma Swaraj made two separate trips to the region — to the UAE and Bahrain — last year to explore new areas of cooperation.

Several monarchs and top leaders of the Gulf have visited India in the past decade. It is no secret that the six states of the Gulf not only provide India with crude oil but also house a 7-million-strong Indian diaspora that contributes to the growth of the domestic economy, the newspaper said.

Meanwhile, the UAE and Bahrain are making country presentations at the Vibrant Gujarat Summit, which opened yesterday (January 11).