Indian diaspora welcomes PM Modi with chants of ‘Vande Mataram’ at Johannesburg hotel

Prime Minister Narendra Modi received a rousing welcome from the Indian diaspora chanting 'Vande Mataram' as he arrived at Sandton Sun Hotel here on Tuesday.

Johannesburg: Prime Minister Narendra Modi received a rousing welcome from the Indian diaspora chanting ‘Vande Mataram’ as he arrived at Sandton Sun Hotel here on Tuesday.

Members of the Indian community were waiting for PM Modi’s arrival to welcome him with ‘dhols’ outside Sandton Sun Hotel in Johannesburg, South Africa.

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Prime Minister Narendra Modi arrived in the South African city of Johannesburg on Tuesday as he kickstarted the first leg of his two-nation visit.

“It is an honour indeed to be in the presence of the Prime Minister. He is a wonderful man and my hero,” says a woman of Indian origin in Johannesburg, South Africa.

Moreover, PM Modi will be addressing the BRICS business forum later today. During a special presser yesterday, Foreign Secretary Kwatra stated that a business delegation from India is also travelling to the country to attend the Business Tracks meetings.

Sharing further details about PM Modi’s trip, Kwatra said, “For the 15th BRICS Summit, a business delegation from India is also travelling to South Africa to attend the Business Tracks meetings and also the meetings of the BRICS Business Council, BRICS Women Business Alliance and the BRICS Business Forum.” “The Prime Minister’s schedule in terms of bilateral meetings with those leaders who would be present in South Africa is still being developed,” he added.

PM Modi said that he looks forward to holding bilateral meetings with “some of the leaders present in Johannesburg”.

“BRICS has been pursuing a strong cooperation agenda across various sectors. We value that BRICS has become a platform for discussing and deliberating on issues of concern for the entire Global South, including development imperatives and reform of the multilateral system,” the PM said in a statement.
BRICS is a grouping of the world economies of Brazil, Russia, India, China, and South Africa.

The BRICS summit will be held from August 22-24. This will be PM Modi’s third visit to South Africa and the trip marks the 30th anniversary of the diplomatic relationship between India and South Africa.

This year’s BRICS is under the presidency of South Africa. The theme of this year’s summit is: “BRICS and Africa: Partnership for mutually accelerated growth, sustainable development and inclusive multilateralism.” This will be the first in-person BRICS Summit after three consecutive years of virtual meetings owing to the Covid-19 pandemic.

From South Africa, the PM will travel to Athens, Greece on Friday at the invitation of Prime Minister of Greece Kyriakos Mitsotakis.