The Indian diaspora in Australia is leaving no stone unturned to ensure that Prime Minister Narendra Modi is accorded a grand welcome when he meets them for a community event on Tuesday evening (local time).
PM Modi will address a rally which is expected to draw a crowd of up to 20,000 people.
As part of PM Modi’s visit to Australia, the Prime Ministers of both countries will join a community event in Sydney to celebrate the vibrant and diverse Indian diaspora, highlighting its role in Australian society.
The Indian Australian Diaspora Foundation, responsible for organising the event, shared visuals from Melbourne Airport, capturing passengers joyfully waving the Indian flag and dancing.
A pilot in Sydney drew the words ‘Welcome Modi’ using a plane exhaust in the clear blue sky to mark the visit of the Prime Minister. The video of the plane engaged in this acrobatics has become viral on social media.
The city of Sydney which is home to a large section of the Indian diaspora has been gearing up for PM Modi’s event since last week. Prime Minister Modi is in Sydney for the last leg of his three-nation visit.
“PM Modi has given India a new identity. We are excited and looking forward to meeting him. This is a lifetime opportunity for us,” members of the Indian diaspora were quoted as saying by news agency ANI. “We are very excited to meet our Prime Minister. Last he came in 2014 but we saw him from afar. We hope to meet and greet him this time,” another person told the news agency.
A woman of Indian-origin told ANI that it is important that her children also meet the Prime Minister. “We’ve all been waiting for him. I’ve met him earlier but I’m looking forward to seeing him again. It is important for our children as well to meet him,” the woman said.
Around 170 Indian-origin individuals flew via a chartered flight from Melbourne to Sydney to attend an event at the Olympic Park Arena, where Australian Prime Minister Anthony Albanese will also be present, a separate report by the NDTV said.
Amongst those present in the flight, named ‘Modi Airways’, was 91-year-old Dr. Navamani Chandra Bose, who travelled from Melbourne, the Australian said in a report.
The nonagenarian said that she was excited to meet PM Modi and is eagerly awaiting his arrival at the event venue.