Namaste Trump: Ahmedabad set to welcome US President, Donald Trump

For the first time in his presidential span, Donald Trump will be visiting India. And the first destination on his list is our very own city, Ahmedabad. To know more about his schedule and agenda read on.

While Texas zealously greeted India’s Prime Minister with a ‘Howdy’, India is set to welcome US President, Donald Trump, with a, ‘Namaste’. Scheduled to land on February 24^th, President Trump will be visiting Ahmedabad this following Monday.

Last September, Prime Minister Narendra Modi paid a visit to the United States. While some of the major agendas of his trip included his high-profile address to the United Nations General Assembly alongside meeting with top business leaders in New York, the landmark event was the ‘Howdy Modi’ extravaganza when Modi visited Houston to address 50,000 American Indians. This is, by far, the biggest crowd any foreign politician has gathered in the United States.

As grand as his visit was, the meeting of these two leaders deepened the ties between their home countries. And to boost this bilateral tie even further, Trump, accompanied by the First Lady, Melania Trump, will be paying a 2-day visit to India, starting with Ahmedabad.

According to the set schedule, Trump, along with Melania and Prime Minister Modi, will first pay homage at the Gandhi Ashram, leading his way to visit the Motera Stadium. This will be the first time that a US President has attended the ashram. They are scheduled to spend about 30 mins at the ashram where the US President might try his hand at spinning a charkha. (as per updated news the visit to Ashram has been cancelled)

To ensure a safe and entertaining trip from the airport till the stadium, the entire road connecting the two destinations is getting a facelift, and the plan is to transform their journey into a 22km long roadshow. “There will be 50 stages along the 22km long roadshow route from there artists will perform as the convoys of President and PM pass by. This is to showcase the country’s cultural diversity”, a senior official of the civic body told The Hindu. Artists from all the 28 states and union territories have been invited to put up a performance, while 50,000 visitors are expected to gather on both sides of the road to welcome him.

#NamasteTrump

24મી તારીખે અમેરિકાના રાષ્ટ્રપતિ @realDonaldTrump અને પ્રધાનમંત્રી @narendramodi ના સ્વાગત માટે અમદાવાદ તૈયાર. pic.twitter.com/5z1TD2QGZF

— AMC (@AmdavadAMC) February 19, 2020

And what awaits him at the end of that road is a spectacular event, titled ‘Namaste Trump’, at the Motera Stadium, world’s largest cricket stadium. With a capacity of accommodating 1.1 lakh spectators, the stadium is expected to be houseful on his arrival. Built at the cost of Rs. 800 cr, the new Motera stadium, christened Sardar Vallabhbhai Patel Cricket Stadium beats the current biggest cricketing venue, the Melbourne Cricket Ground. Some of the noted celebrities listed to perform at the event are Kailash Kher, Sairam Dave, Kirtidan Gadhvi and Parthiv Gohil.

India-US trade relations are on a rise, the cross cultural relationship between the two nations go a long way, and over last many decades the Gujarati community’s significance has been continuously increasing in the US. The current visit by the US President to Gujarat is a testimony to this fact.

We hope this historic event lends visibility to India’s diverse culture, to the entire world. India’s culture and tradition that is survived in its arts and performances is one of the key competencies that can give an edge to the nation in the current age of economic transformations.