A thousand members of the community will gather at the Capital Hill during premier’s speech to Congress.
AB Wire
WASHINGTON, DC: The Indian American community in the Washington, DC, area is gearing up to welcome Prime Minister Narendra Modi when he visits the U.S. capital early next month. The Indian premier is scheduled to arrive here on June 6th for a two-day visit, during which he will address a joint session of U.S. Congress and also meet with President Barack Obama.
“The community is very excited to welcome the prime minister of India to our city,” said Sunil Singh, head of a 60-member committee comprising leaders of more than two-dozen Indian American organizations in the Washington metropolitan area.
More than a hundred members of the community are expected to welcome Modi when he arrives at the Andrews Air Force Base just outside of Washington on June 6, said Singh, who is a prominent DC area businessman and a former chairman of the National Council of Asian Indian Associations.
On June 8th, when Modi addresses the joint session of Congress, more than a thousand members of the community are expected to gather at Capitol Hill to watch the proceedings from there.
Only guests invited by members of Congress will be present in person for the speech. But Singh said the committee is planning on showing the speech live for those who gather outside at the Hill. “We are trying to get permission for using audio-visual equipment from Capitol Police,” he said.
Singh also said the committee has requested the Embassy of India to have the prime minister address the Indian American community just after he finishes the congressional speech. Modi is scheduled to attend a lunch hosted by Speaker Paul Ryan after the speech.
Singh said the committee will be arranging buses from Maryland the Virginia suburbs of DC to shuttle community members to the Hill.
Roughly a hundred people from the community will also see off Modi from Andrews Air Force Base when he departs for India on June 8.
Separately, the American Bazaar has learned that Ambassador Arun K. Singh will be hosting reception for the prime minister on June 7. The venue and time of that event are being finalized.
In the meantime, the White House said on Friday that Obama will meet with Modi on Tuesday, June 7. “The visit will highlight the deepening of the U.S.-India relationship in key areas since the President’s visit to New Delhi in January 2015,” it said. “The President looks forward to discussing progress made on our climate change and clean energy partnership, security and defense cooperation, and economic growth priorities.”