Lord Lakshman statue being installed to welcome G20 guests in Lucknow

According to a senior official, "The statue of Lakhsman will come up at the exit route of the airport. The city has been named after lord Lakhsman and hence, he shall be the first person to greet the delegates."

Lucknow: A large statue of Lord Lakshman is being installed at the Lucknow airport to greet the delegates coming to attend the G20 meet in the state capital.

According to a senior official, “The statue of Lakhsman will come up at the exit route of the airport. The city has been named after lord Lakhsman and hence, he shall be the first person to greet the delegates.”

The delegates will be greeted with a scarf, tilak and aarti at the airport lounge and ODOP miniatures will be presented to them.

Through the exit route of the airport the performers specialising in Bamrasiya, Faruwahi, Mayur, Rai, Pai danda, Dedhiya among others will greet the visitors with their performances.

Urban development minister A.K. Sharma said rich culture and diversity of the state will be showcased before the delegates, who will participate in meets in four UP cities –Lucknow, Agra, Varanasi and Greater Noida — next month.

The first meet will take place in Agra on February 11. After staying in Taj city for one more day on February 12, the delegates will arrive in Lucknow and attend the meet on February 13 and 14.

Principal secretary, urban development department, Amrit Abhijat said elaborate arrangements have been made to welcome the guests.

“We have created themes for all four cities. The Lucknow leg will focus on tourism and cultural richness. In Agra, emphasis will be on law-and-order situation,” said Abhijat.

In Agra, the meet will begin with ’empower inception meeting’ while in Lucknow digital economy working group meet will take place. The Varanasi and Greater Noida meets will take place in April and August.

In Lucknow, the delegates will get to witness Kathak performance, recreation of Holi festival, virtual tour of Prayagraj, traditional musical night to be performed by Malini Awasthi among other events.

Folk artistes from Mathura, Ayodhya, Lalitpur, Banda, Prayagraj and Lucknow will also perform for the guests.

The entire state capital, including major crossings and areas around famous hotels, will be decked up with lights, wall paintings and trees.