Indian Tricolour Lights Up Sydney Opera House Sails: Aus PM Albanese Cites 1.4 Billion Reasons Why

Prime Minister Anthony Albanese said the decision to light up the sails of the Sydney Opera House in the colours of the Indian flag on Wednesday evening (local time) will help cement relationships between both countries, according to a report by Australian news outlet 2GB and 9News.

The Sydney Harbour was also illuminated in the colours of the Indian flag.

The Australian news agency said that the sails were lit in a show of respect as Prime Minister Narendra Modi concluded his three-day visit to the country after almost a decade. He last visited Australia in 2014.

“There are 1.4 billion reasons why we want the Indian flag on the opera house because it is the largest population in the world. One of the things about lighting up the Opera House is it projects our image to the world,” Albanese was quoted as saying by news outlet 2GB.

“Two thirds of those 1.4 billion people are under the age of 35, we want a relationship with them, we want them to come to Australia and bring their dollars,” the Australian Prime Minister further added.

The last time the sails of the Opera House were lit in the tricolour was to commemorate the 75th anniversary of Indian Independence in August last year.

During his conversation with 2GB’s Chris O’Keefe, Albanese was questioned about not lighting the sails of the Opera House during the coronation ceremony of King Charles V earlier this month.

“It wasn’t our decision about the King’s Coronation, state governments took various decisions around the country. I was in the UK so I wasn’t a party to any of those decisions,” Albanese was quoted as saying by 2GB.

The report said that Australian state New South Wales’s premier Chris Minns came under criticism earlier this month for deciding not to light the sails for the king’s coronation. He took the decision citing cost to the taxpayer.

The Prime Minister said the king’s coronation was commemorated via other appropriate displays in capital Canberra. The report said that the federal government of Australia will be covering the cost of lighting up the sails on Wednesday night.

Prime Minister Narendra Modi and Albanese held a bilateral meeting this morning where both discussed measures to take India and Australia relations to the next level. They signed several memorandum of understanding and discussed increasing cooperation in areas of trade and investment, defence and security, renewable energy, green hydrogen, critical minerals, education, migration and mobility, and people to people ties.

Both of them also attended Australia’s Indian Diaspora mega event at Homebush’s Qudos Bank Arena with 20,000 other people.