The pink city of India rolled out the red carpet for the three-day Pravasi Bharatiya Divas that has kicked off here on Saturday. All decked up and security beefed up for welcoming national leaders and delegates from various countries, the city has got a gift from the Union government in return with the opening of a new office of protector of emigrants (PoE) in Jaipur.
“The new office of PoE is a gift from the Union government to the people of Rajastan, said Union minister of overseas Indian affairs Vayalar Ravi after inaugurating the office. He said that it would benefit a large number of people in Rajastan who go abroad for jobs. There had been an increase in the number of emigrants from Rajastan, particularly to West Asia, during the last three years, he added.
The city has already received appreciation from the delegates of the three-day annual event for showcasing its rich cultural heritage. Young girls and boys, wearing typical colourful Rajastani outfits, attracted attention on the first day with their day-long traditional dance performance at the garden in front of the Birla auditorium here. Top officers of the Rajasthan government said that chief minister Ashok Gehlot had been directly overseeing the arrangements for the grand event. Nonetheless, the city’s civic authority got into trouble after the historic Hawa Mahal developed light shades in some corners after they used water pressure hoses to clean the 18th-century monument ahead of the event. The event is believed to give Mr Gehlot an opportunity for image makeover after the nurse missing case and the Gopalgarh communal riots that recently put his government in bad light. His government will also use this opportunity to invite investment from NRIs and to pitch for his state’s development before the Prime Minister and other Union ministers, including finance minister Pranab Mukherjee.
“The PM will sit with the state’s ministers on Sunday and we are going to do a presentation for him on our achievements in the state so far,” Mr Gehlot told reporters here. “We will also apprise the PM about the problems faced by the state,” he added.