Prime Minister Narendra Modi hosted a gala dinner, on Saturday, for leaders of BRICS member countries at the Bharat Mandapam. The grand dinner was accompanied by performance by an ensemble of over 100 artistes drawn largely from India as well as other member countries of BRICS. Track live updates on BRICS summit
Russian President Vladimir Putin arrived at Bharat Mandapam for the dinner, followed by Kazakhstan President Kassym-Jomart Tokayev and Indonesian President Prabowo Subianto. Union Ministers Kiren Rijiju, Sarbananda Sonowal and Arjun Ram Meghwal, along with Uttar Pradesh Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath and other ministers and chief ministers, travelled together by bus to Bharat Mandapam for the dinner. Union Home Minister Amit Shah, Union Health Minister JP Nadda and Lok Sabha Speaker Om Birla also departed for the venue along with other ministers.
India is hosting the BRICS Summit at the sprawling venue in central Delhi on September 12-13, which is being attended by Chinese President Xi Jinping, Russian President Vladimir Putin and several other heads of state, among other top dignitaries.
“A large group of artistes — classical dancers and musicians, largely from India — as well as musicians from various other member countries of BRICS, will showcase ‘BRICS Symphony’ during the gala dinner that the prime minister will host for the invited leaders on September 12, the day the Summit opens, at the Bharat Mandapam,” news agency PTI quoted an official as saying. The vibrant canvas, born out of the “BRICS Friendship Mural project”, is displayed on a wall inside the main Bharat Mandapam building, which houses the Summit Room, a senior official of the Indian Council for Cultural Relations (ICCR), the cultural arm of the Ministry of External Affairs (MEA), told PTI.
Earlier, Union Ministers Nirmala Sitharaman, Shivraj Singh Chouhan and Kiren Rijiju, along with other ministers, departed for Bharat Mandapam.
