New Delhi: “The world is looking at India with hope and curiosity,” Prime Minister Narendra Modi said in his address at the 17th Pravasi Bharatiya Divas Monday, underscoring that the country’s voice was being heard at the global stage.
Modi also said that India’s presidency of the G20 this year would not merely be a diplomatic event but one that will see all-round participation of citizens.
The Prime Minister called the Indian diaspora “brand ambassadors of India” at the event in Indore, Madhya Pradesh which marks the contribution of the overseas community towards the development of the country.
The Diwas is celebrated every year on 9 January – the day Mahatma Gandhi arrived in Mumbai from South Africa in 1915.
To Indians abroad, Modi said: “Your role as India’s brand ambassador is diverse. You are a brand ambassador of Make in India, Yoga, the handicraft industry and at the same time India’s millets.”
The Prime Minister went on to highlight how special this year’s “Pravasi Bharatiya Divas” was. “We celebrated 75 years of India’s Independence just a few months ago. An exhibition of the freedom struggle has been organised here. The nation has entered the Amrit Kaal. India’s global vision will also be strengthened,” he said.
Modi, along with this year’s guests – President of Suriname Chandrikapersad Santokhi and President of Guyana Irfaan Ali – also launched a commemorative stamp to mark the day.
Looking at India, Narendra Modi emphasised the country’s “capability of becoming a knowledge centre and a skilled capital”. “Our youth has skills, values and honesty and the determination to work. Our skilled capital can become the world’s growth engine,” he said.
Minister of External Affairs S. Jaishankar said the Divas aimed to refresh bonds and boost energy. “I believe under PM Modi’s leadership, India will surely emerge as a leading power. Along with that, the global standing of those with India will also grow,” the minister said.
Special guest of honour at the convention, Chandrikapersad Santokhi, encouraged a diaspora fund for projects and programs. “Training centres and schools in different places of our countries should be initiated to learn the Hindi language, religions, culture and our traditions,” he said.
He also said a Caribbean high-tech training institution in modern technology should be welcomed for diaspora nations, adding, his country Suriname was willing to host one of them.
Guyana President Irfaan Ali lauded India’s Covid-19 vaccination outreach. “When the world couldn’t find vaccines and you faced the challenge of the COVID-19 pandemic, you showed what real love and hope was when you shared vaccines with the rest of the world,” Ali said at the launch of the convention.
“India used the fruits of its Independence to assist other developing countries. PM Modi, we owe you a debt of gratitude. When the world locked its borders and globalisation failed, you showed that globalisation could still succeed and that there was still love when the hardest of times hit us,” Ali added.
Touching upon Mahatma Gandhi’s return to India, Ali said, ”On this day 107 years ago, the once physically frail-looking but morally firm man returned and intensified the struggle for India’s Independence.”
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