Singapore President Tharman Shanmugaratnam, who is on a two-day visit to the coastal state of Odisha, went to Raghurajpur artists’ village and the Sun Temple at Konark in the state’s Puri district on Saturday. He was accompanied by the First Lady of Singapore to the Raghurajpur heritage village, where he spent an hour and purchased two Pattachitra paintings.
He also interacted with artists as he saw paintings and inquired about the Pattachitra arts.
Singapore President visits Konark temple
He also paid a visit to Odisha’s famous 13th-century Sun Temple at Konark, where the Singapore President was received by officials of the state government and the Archaeological Survey of India (ASI).
Abhas Mohanty, a guide who assisted the Singapore President during his visit to Konark, said that the President was informed about people’s lifestyles across various civilizations of the world and human emotions described in the stonework at the temple, adding, “We also apprised him of the shape of stone statues at the Konark temple. He was really happy.”
President Shanmugaratnam is also scheduled to visit a Bharat Biotech vaccine manufacturing plant in Odisha’s capital Bhubaneswar.
Earlier on Friday, he visited galleries at ‘Kalabhoomi’ and took note of Odisha’s art, handicrafts, and handlooms.
He also paid a visit to the Jagannath Gallery and acknowledged the spiritual consciousness and traditions of the state.
State’s Governor Haribabu Kambhampati, along with CM Mohan Charan Majhi and Union Education Minister Dharmendra Pradhan, were present on the occasion.
Notably, Singapore’s first lady bought a saree from ‘Kalabhoomi’ and made the payment through UPI. President Shanmugaratnam and his wife were served traditional Odia food.
Shanmugaratnam holds talks with President Murmu, PM Modi
Before embarking on his visit to Odisha, Shanmugaratnam held separate talks with President Droupadi Murmu and Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Thursday. The discussion focussed on the expansion of the bilateral ties.
In its weekly media presser on Friday, the MEA said that the work is already going on for setting up a green hydrogen corridor between the eastern part of India and Singapore, Secretary (East). The green corridor includes a link from Tuticorin and another from Paradip in Odisha, MEA added.
(With inputs from PTI)
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