Indian diaspora in US organising grand reception for Modi

Washington, Aug 18: The Indian community in the US is planning to host a mega reception for Prime Minister Narendra Modi, who will travel to San Francisco after addressing a United Nations summit on sustainable development on September 25.

About 500 Indian-American organisations have joined hands to host a grand reception for Modi in San Jose, Silicon Valley, on September 27, Rakhi Israni, spokesperson of Indo-American Community of West Coast (IACW) said in a statement.

"Prime Minister Modi has done a superb job in his first year in office, and it is evident by the public's response to the upcoming event how excited the Indian diaspora is about the future of India," the statement said. Online process for registration of reception's organisers has been completed, it said.

The United Nations summit for the adoption of the post-2015 development agenda will be held from September 25 to 27 and will be convened as a high-level plenary meeting of the General Assembly. Modi is expected to address the gathering on September 25 and then travel to San Francisco, becoming the fourth Indian premier to visit the US' West Coast.

His visit to San Francisco would also revive -- after a gap of four decades with the exception of the former prime minister P V Narasimha Rao in 1994 -- the post-independence tradition of Indian prime ministers visiting the US cities other than New York or Washington DC.

The thriving Indian diaspora in the US, in particular those on the West Coast and the Silicon Valley has welcomed Modi's decision to visit San Francisco. Massive preparations are on to accord a grand welcome to him at the SAP Center, one of the largest indoor stadium in the Silicon Valley, known as the tech hub of the world. The event is expected to be attended by an around 18,000-strong audience.

"The reception is timed around the scheduling of many high impact meetings and programs, all of which stand to promote the shared ideals of innovation and entrepreneurship that define both Vibrant India under the leadership of Prime Minister Modi and Silicon Valley," the IACW statement said.

The visit shall also highlight the contributions of India and Indian-Americans to the technology and clean energy sectors, it said. The PM is likely to visit the offices of Internet giant Google. In California, he will make a speech at the famous Stanford University. Modi had given his maiden address to the UN General Assembly last year and had then travelled to Washington to meet US President Barack Obama.

PTI