BEIJING: India and China kicked off the first anniversary of the landmark “informal summit” between Prime Minister Narendra Modi and President Xi Jinping in Wuhan, which was largely credited to have improved the bilateral ties after the Doklam standoff, by holding a week-long India festival in the central Chinese city.
To commemorate the first anniversary of the Modi-Xi talks held April 27-28, 2018, India launched “Colors of India” week in Wuhan April 29 during which dance performances, movie screenings, photo exhibitions and other business and tourism promotion events were organized.
The program was inaugurated by Indian Ambassador to China Vikram Misri and Deputy Mayor of Wuhan, Chen Xiexin.
It was jointly organised by Embassy of India, Beijing, and Indian Council for Cultural Relations (ICCR), New Delhi, in association with the Hubei provincial government and Wuhan municipal government and supported by the China Arts Association, a statement the from Indian Embassy here said.
The festival also included photo exhibitions on the life and times of Mahatma Gandhi; Buddhist heritage sites of India along with Buddhist-themed sculptures by renowned Indian photographer Benoy Behl. It also showcased the worldwide celebration of International Day of Yoga.
An Indian film festival was held as part of the celebrations during which five popular Indian movies, each one representing a specific genre, including romance, comedy, action thriller, adventure and drama, were screened.
The inaugural film was the romantic movie Badrinath ki Dulhaniya starring Varun Dhawan and Alia Bhatt.
A business event involving local Chinese companies was held April 30 to encourage Hubei business leaders to invest in India and explore opportunities with Indian IT companies and local Chinese industries.
A Cooperation Framework Agreement between Indian company Zeta-V and Wuhan Software Association was signed at the business event April 30 to explore mutually beneficial cooperation in the IT sector. A presentation on Sino- Indian Digital Cooperative Plaza (SIDCOP) was made at the event.
A tourism promotion roadshow was held April 30 for deepening people-to-people exchanges between the two countries by introducing the unique experiences India offers as a tourist destination to Chinese travellers.
As part of his visit to Wuhan for the India Week, Misri held consultations with Jiang Chaoliang, the ruling Communist Party Secretary of Hubei.
The Wuhan summit was largely credited to have turned around the bilateral relations soured by the 73-day-long Doklam standoff, triggered by Chinese troops’ attempts to build a road close to Indian border in an area also claimed by Bhutan in 2017.
India had objected to it as it came close to key highway connecting with North Eastern states. The standoff ended after Chinese troops halted plans to build the road.
After the Wuhan summit, both the countries stepped up efforts to improve relations on different spheres including the military-to-military ties.
Modi and Xi issued strategic guidance to their militaries to strengthen communications to build trust and understanding, a move aimed at avoiding a Doklam-like situation in the future.
China said Xi will visit India to hold second informal summit after the general elections in India. PTI
