From “Kem Chho Trump” to “Namaste President Trump”, now the mega event at Ahmedabad’s Motera stadium will be called “Namaste Trump”, in which U.S. President Donald Trump and India’s Prime Minister Narendra Modi will be addressing around 1.25 lakh people on February 24.
“The event at the Motera stadium will be called Namaste Trump,” a senior Gujarat government official said.
The Gujarat Cricket Association (GCA) is the nodal agency organising the mega event to inaugurate the facility with a capacity of 1.1 lakh, the world’s largest cricket stadium.
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The stadium will be full to capacity, while more than 10,000 persons will be sitting on the floors circling the stage from where both leaders, representing the world’s oldest democracy and the world’s largest democracy, respectively, will be speaking.
According to sources, the audience will enter the stadium three hours before the event and will be allowed to leave two hours after the President and Prime Minister leave the venue.
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There will be multi-layered security and each participant will go through it from different entrance gates before reaching his or her seat.
“Top Bollywood singers like Kailash Kher and performers and top Gujarati singers like Kirtidan Gadhavi, Parthiv Gohil and others will be performing at the stadium before and after the main even Namaste Trump,” a senior official involved in the preparations said.
Besides the main program at the stadium, another big program the state authorities have planned is 22 km long road show from the airport to the Sabarmati Ashram and from there to the stadium.
“Its a mega road show we have planned in honour of the President Trump and PM Modi,” Ahmedabad Municipal Commissioner Vijay Nehra told The Hindu .
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The civic body has invited cultural groups and artists and performers from all states and union territories to participate and perform in the road show.
“There will be 50 stages along the 22 km long road show 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 said.
The civic body is expecting more than two lakh people to participate in the road show.
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“It’s a historic event to the held in Ahmedabad city to welcome and honour US President Donald Trump along with the First Lady and Prime Minister Narendra Modi,” Mr Nehra said.
In all, the civic body has resurfaced and refurbished roads and streets while buildings have been painted as part of the beautification exercise ahead of the high profile visit.