Rashtrapati Bhavan Archives - Lokmarg

Amrit Udyan Of Rashtrapati Bhavan To Open For Public From Feb 2

By LokMarg 20th January 2024

Rashtrapati Bhavan’s Amrit Udyan will open for public viewing from February 2 to March 31, an official statement said on Saturday.

People can visit the gardens six days a week, except on Mondays which are maintenance days.

“The Amrit Udyan of Rashtrapati Bhavan will open for public viewing from February 2 to March 31, 2024 under the Udyan Utsav-1, 2024,” it said.

The Amrit Udyan will be open for special categories on February 22 (for differently abled persons), February 23 (for personnel of defence, paramilitary, and police forces), March 1 (for women and tribal women’s self-help groups), and March 5 (for children of orphanages).

It further said that the people will be allowed to visit in six hourly slots between 10 AM and 4 PM.

Visitors will be allowed to visit in six hourly slots between 10 am and 4 pm.

“The capacity for the two forenoon slots (1000 hrs to 1200 hrs) will be 7,500 visitors during weekdays and 10,000 visitors in each slot on weekends. The capacity for the four afternoon slots (1200 hrs to 1600 hrs) will be 5,000 visitors in each slot during weekdays and 7,500 visitors on weekends,” it said.

Booking can be made on https://visit.rashtrapatibhavan.gov.in/visit/amrit-udyan/rE.

Walk-in visitors have to register themselves at the facilitation counters as well as at the Self Service Kiosk near gate no. 12 of Rashtrapati Bhavan.

Entry and exit for all visitors will be from gate no. 35 of the President’s Estate, close to where North Avenue meets Rashtrapati Bhavan.

It also said that for the convenience of visitors, shuttle bus service from Central Secretariat Metro Station to gate no. 35 will be available at the interval of every 30 minutes between 9.30 am to 5.00 pm.

During the tour, visitors will pass through the bonsai garden, musical fountain, central lawn, long garden and circular garden.

At the exit there will be food courts for them.

Visitors can carry mobile phones, electronic keys, purses or handbags, water bottles and milk bottles for infants.

Provision for drinking water, toilets, and first aid/medical facilities will be made at various places along the public route. (ANI)

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Murmu Hosts Oman Sultan At Rashtrapati Bhavan

By LokMarg 16th December 2023

President Droupadi Murmu on Saturday hosted Oman Sultan Haitham bin Tarik at the Rashtrapati Bhavan. She received him and the two leaders warmly greeted each other.

Haitham Bin Tarik met Vice President Jagdeep Dhankhar, Prime Minister Narendra Modi and other dignitaries after President Droupadi Murmu received him at the Rashtrapati Bhavan in Delhi. President Murmu, Vice President Dhankhar and PM Modi also met with dignitaries from Oman.

External Affairs Minister S Jaishankar, Union Minister for Commerce and Industry Piyush Goyal, Union Minister of State (MoS) for External Affairs V Muraleedharan, Foreign Secretary Vinay Kwatra and other officials were present on the occasion.

Earlier in the day, Oman Sultan Haitham bin Tarik held a meeting with Vice President Jagdeep Dhankhar. The leaders underlined the deep-rooted ties between India and Oman founded on the history of friendship, people-to-people ties and cultural connect.

In a post shared on X, Vice President stated, “Hon’ble Vice-President of India, Shri Jagdeep Dhankhar, called on His Majesty Sultan Haitham Bin Tarik of Sultanate of Oman, today. The leaders underlined the deep-rooted ties between India and Oman founded on a rich history of friendship, cultural connect and people-to-people ties.”

Oman Sultan Haitham bin Tarik also held a meeting with PM Narendra Modi at Hyderabad House in Delhi. The two leaders discussed ways to deepen cooperation in commerce, culture, defence, and innovation.

Taking to X, PM Modi stated, “Had an excellent meeting with His Majesty Sultan Haitham bin Tarik of Oman. Reviewing the full range of bilateral ties, we discussed ways to deepen cooperation in commerce, culture, defence, innovation and more.”

Speaking at the meeting of the joint delegation, PM Modi said, “Today we are adopting a new India-Oman joint vision, a partnership for the future. In this joint vision, concrete action points have been agreed upon in ten different areas. I am confident that the joint vision will give a new and modern shape to our partnership.”

“I am happy that the discussion on the CEPA agreement is going on and two rounds of discussion have been successfully completed, in which many important issues have been agreed upon. I hope that we will soon be able to sign this agreement which will add a new dimension to our economic cooperation,” PM Modi added.

Terming the Sultan’s maiden State visit as ‘historic’, PM Modi said, “I am happy to welcome you to India. Today is a historic day in Oman-India relations as after 26 years, the Sultan of Oman has come to India on a state visit and I have got the opportunity to welcome you. On behalf of the people of India, I welcome you.”

Oman Sultan also visited the National Gallery of Modern Art in Delhi. Earlier in the day, the Sultan of Oman was accorded a ceremonial reception at the forecourt of Rashtrapati Bhavan in New Delhi on Saturday, the second day of his state visit to India.

PM Modi and President Droupadi Murmu received the Sultan at the Rashtrapati Bhawan. Sultan Haitham bin Tarik then inspected a Guard of Honour by the combined defence services.

On December 15, Sultan arrived at the Delhi airport for a three-day State visit and was received by Union Minister of State (MoS) for External Affairs, V Muraleedharan.

Notably, India and Oman share a long-standing friendship rooted in historical, cultural, and economic ties. Furthermore, people-to-people contact between India and Oman can be traced back 5,000 years. The diplomatic relations between the two countries were established in 1955 and were upgraded to a strategic partnership in 2008. (ANI)

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Oman Sultan Accorded Ceremonial Reception At Rashtrapati Bhavan

By LokMarg 16th December 2023

The Sultan of Oman, Haitham bin Tarik, was accorded a ceremonial reception at the forecourt of Rashtrapati Bhavan in New Delhi on Saturday, the second day of his state visit to India.

Prime Minister Narendra Modi and President Droupadi Murmu received the Sultan at the Rashtrapati Bhawan.

Sultan Haitham bin Tarik then inspected a Guard of Honour by the combined defence services.

The Sultan was received by Union Minister of State (MoS) for External Affairs, V Muraleedharan, as he arrived at the Delhi airport on Friday for a three-day State visit.

Earlier, the official spokesperson for the Ministry of External Affairs (MEA), Arindam Bagchi, said the visit by the Sultan of Oman will further boost the friendship and cooperation between the two nations.

“His Majesty Sultan Haitham Bin Tarik of Oman arrives to a warm welcome in New Delhi on his first State Visit to India. Received by @MOS_MEA at the airport. The visit will further reinforce the longstanding friendship and cooperation between India & Oman and strengthen bilateral ties,” Bagchi posted from his official handle on X.

The MEA noted that the maiden State visit by the Sultan of Oman marks a significant milestone in the diplomatic relations between New Delhi and Muscat.

The Sultan arrived in India at the invitation of President Murmu.

He will visit the National Gallery of Modern Art in the national capital on Friday and hold a meeting with PM Modi at Hyderabad House.

During his visit, PM Modi will also host a luncheon in honour of the Sultan. The visit will be an opportunity to explore avenues for future collaboration between India and Oman for regional stability, progress and prosperity, the MEA release stated.

Significantly, India and Oman share a long-standing friendship rooted in historical, cultural, and economic ties. Furthermore, people-to-people contact between India and Oman can be traced back 5,000 years.

The diplomatic relations between the two countries were established in 1955 and were upgraded to a strategic partnership in 2008.

Oman is India’s closest defence partner in the Gulf region as well, with defence cooperation emerging as a key pillar of the strategic partnership between the two countries, according to the MEA.

Oman is the only country in West Asia with which all three services of the Indian Armed Forces conduct regular bilateral exercises and service-level staff talks.

India also extended a special invitation to the Sultanate of Oman to participate in the G20 Summit and meetings as a guest country under India’s G20 Presidency.

Oman participated in over 150 working group meetings, with nine of its ministers taking part in various G20 ministerial meetings. (ANI)

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Cambodian King Accorded Guard Of Honour At Rashtrapati Bhavan

By LokMarg 30th May 2023

Cambodian King Norodom Sihamoni, who arrived in India for a three-day visit, was given a ceremonial reception at Rashtrapati Bhavan here on Tuesday.

Cambodian King met President Droupadi Murmu, Prime Minister Narendra Modi and other officials at the Rashtrapati Bhavan. King Norodom Sihamoni is on his maiden three-day official visit to India.

President Droupadi Murmu will host a State Banquet in honour of Cambodia’s King Norodom Sihamoni in the evening.

On Monday, Union Minister of State for External Affairs Rajkumar Ranjan Singh received the Cambodian King at the airport.

Ministry of External Affairs official spokesperson Arindam Bagchi took to his Twitter handle to inform about his arrival.

He tweeted, “H.M. King Norodom Sihamoni of Cambodia arrives in New Delhi on his maiden State visit to India. Warmly welcomed by MoS @RanjanRajkuma11. An opportunity to further deepen the civilisational relations between India and Cambodia.”

During his visit, Cambodia King will hold bilateral meetings with President Murmu and Prime Minister Narendra Modi. Vice President Jagdeep Dhankhar and External Affairs Minister S Jaishankar will call on the King.

During his visit, the Cambodia King will also pay floral tributes to Mahatma Gandhi at Raj Ghat. The MEA in the press release noted that the visit of the King of Cambodia will further “strengthen and deepen the civilisational relations between India and Cambodia.”

Cambodian King Norodom Sihamoni’s visit to India marks the culmination of the celebrations of the 70th anniversary of diplomatic ties between the two nations, the Ministry of External Affairs said in a press release. This visit by the King of Cambodia is taking place after almost six decades.

“The State visit marks the culmination of the celebrations of the 70th anniversary of diplomatic relations between India and Cambodia, which were established in 1952. This visit by the King of Cambodia is taking place after almost six decades, with the last being that of the current King’s father in 1963,” the MEA said in the press release.

India and Cambodia enjoy “warm and friendly nations” marked by “civilisational, cultural and economic linkages and deep-rooted people-to-people ties,” according to MEA press release. The ties between the two nations are based on shared cultural values, commitment to foster economic growth, collaboration in the fields of defence & security and convergence on regional and global issues, according to an MEA press release.

The MEA in the press release said, “India actively assists Cambodia in capacity building & human resource development through training slots under the ITEC and scholarships under ICCR. India has also extended grants and concessional loans for developmental projects. Conservation and restoration of the ancient temples of Angkor Wat, Ta Prohm and Preah Vihar are being carried out under GoI funding.”

According to the MEA press release, trade between India and Cambodia for FY 2023-23 stood at USD 366 million and is growing. Indian investments in Cambodia are estimated at around USD 115 million, particularly in pharmaceuticals, automobiles and mining.

India has extended a grant of USD 1.5 million for the purchase of demining equipment and has offered a line of credit worth USD 50 million Line of Credit for the procurement of defence equipment from India. Customised training courses are being carried out for Cambodian Army Personnel in India and Mobile training teams from Indian Army have been deployed to Cambodia for training Cambodian Army personnel. (ANI)

Rashtrapati Bhavan To Open For Public Six Days A Week From June 1

By LokMarg 16th May 2023

Rashtrapati Bhavan will be open for public viewing six days a week from June 1, 2023, said an official statement on Tuesday.

The tour of Rashtrapati Bhavan will be available from Tuesday to Sunday (except on Gazetted Holidays) in seven-time slots between 0930 hrs and 1630 hrs. Rashtrapati Bhavan Museum Complex is also open for visitors from Tuesday to Sunday (except on Gazetted Holidays), the statement added.
According to the statement, people can witness the Change of Guard Ceremony at the Forecourt of Rashtrapati Bhavan every Saturday from 0800 hrs to 0900 hrs. The Ceremony will not take place on Saturday if it is a Gazetted Holiday or if Rashtrapati Bhavan so notifies it.

US Ambassador to India Eric Garcetti and envoys of Qatar and the Principality of Monaco last week presented their credentials to President Droupadi Murmu at the Rashtrapati Bhavan.

“The President of India, Smt Droupadi Murmu accepted credentials from the Ambassadors of the United States of America, Qatar and Monaco at a ceremony held at Rashtrapati Bhavan today,” a Rashtrapati Bhavan release said.

Apart from Eric Garcetti, Qatar’s Ambassador to India Mohammed Hassan Jabir Al-Jabir and Monaco’s Ambassador Didier Gamerdinger, Monaco presented their credentials to the President.

Garcetti, former mayor of Los Angeles, was sworn in by US Vice President Kamala Harris as the new US Ambassador to India in March this year. Earlier, the Senate confirmed his appointment as the next US ambassador to India.

On Garcetti’s arrival in India, Indian Embassy in the US tweeted, “Namaste, Ambassador-Designate Eric Garcetti! We’re thrilled to welcome you to #IncredibleIndia and work with you to build even stronger ties between our two great nations.”

The US Embassy in India had been without an ambassador since January 2021, which is the longest stretch in the history of US-India relations that the post remained vacant.

Kenneth Juster had stepped down after the change of government in the United States. (ANI)

Ramesh Bais Appointed As M’rashtra Governor

By LokMarg 12th February 2023

The Rashtrapati Bhavan on Sunday announced the names for appointment on the post of 12 Governors for states and one Lieutenant Governor in the Union Territory of Ladakh.

The statement from Rashtrapati Bhavan stated that President Droupadi Murmu has accepted the resignations of Bhagat Singh Koshyari as Governor of Maharashtra and Radha Krishnan Mathur as Lt. Governor of Ladakh.
Ramesh Bais, the Governor of Jharkhand has now been appointed as Governor of Maharashtra, while, Brig. (Dr.) B.D. Mishra (Retd.), who is the Governor of Arunachal Pradesh has been appointed as Lt. Governor of Ladakh.

The statement also informed that Justice (Retd.) S Abdul Nazeer has been appointed as the Governor of Andhra Pradesh.

Let Gen Kaiwalya Trivikram Parnaik, PVSM, UYSM, YSM (Retired) has been appointed as the Governor of Arunachal Pradesh, Lakshman Prasad Acharya as Governor of Sikkim, CP Radhakrishnan as Governor of Jharkhand, Shiv Pratap Shukla as Governor of Himachal Pradesh, Gulab Chand Kataria as Governor of Assam, the statement read.

In addition to these, several Governors have been given charge of different states.

“Biswa Bhusan Harichandan, the Governor of Andhra Pradesh has now been appointed as the Governor of Chhattisgarh. Sushri Anusuiya Uikye, the Governor of Chhattisgarh has been appointed as Governor of Manipur. La Ganesan, the Governor of Manipur has been appointed as the Governor of Nagaland. Phagu Chauhan, the Governor of Bihar has now been appointed as Governor of Meghalaya, and Rajendra Vishwanath Arlekar, the Governor of Himachal Pradesh has now been appointed as Governor of Bihar, the release added.

“The above appointments will take effect from the dates they assume charge of their respective offices,” the statement added. (ANI)

For Manju, the platform is a workplace

By LokMarg Publishing 28th May 2018

She has been the sole breadwinner for her three teenage children. She lost her husband 10 years ago. After overcoming family disputes and psychological hurdles and encouraged by her mother Mohini, Devi acquired her deceased husband Mahadev’s porter licence (No. 15) and took to the demanding task of hauling luggage of passengers at the Jaipur Railway Station.

Authorities initially told her there were no women porters and hence it would be difficult for her. But she persisted and eventually given the badge number, she said. It took her a while to get a grasp of the realities of her job and the challenge included designing her own uniform. Now, clad in a red kurta and white salwar, she sets out every day to work in multiple shifts, to make ends meet for her family.

Devi was among 112 women who were felicitated by the Ministry of Women and Child Development, besides former beauty queens Aishwarya Rai and Nicole Faria, mountaineer Bachendri Pal, Anshu Jamsenpa, missile woman Tessy Thomas and private detective Rajani Pandit.

She was among a gathering of 90 women achievers from different backgrounds at Rashtrapati Bhavan on January 20, this year and President Ram Nath Kovind had said that he got “emotional” on hearing her story. “I weighed 30 kg and the passengers’ luggage was also 30 kg but it was nowhere to the burden of feeding three children,” Devi said in jest.