Gandhinagar/New Delhi: Veteran Bharatiya Janata Party leader LK Advani on Wednesday praised the visit of Prime Minister Narendra Modi to the United States, describing it as an outcome with a lot of positives.
"It was a very good visit. All reports have been very satisfactory," said Advani on Prime Minister Modi's visit to the United States
Advani's comments came on a day when the Prime Minister left for New Delhi via Frankfurt, Germany, after completing a five-day successful visit to the United States.
During visits to New York and Washington, the Prime Minister discussed and deliberated on a wide range of issues, including his pet objective of making India the next big manufacturing hub and foreign investment destination of the world. He also promoted the idea of having a "Clean India", interacted with American and Indian American businessmen to re-emphasise his Make in India pitch.
In Washington, he met the who's who of the American leadership, including President Barack Obama, Vice President Joe Biden, Defence Secretary Chuck Hagel and Maryaland Governor Michael O'Malley.
The Washington leg of the trip focused attention on larger, more complicated and serious bilateral issues of mutual interest to the two countries, including a decision to start a dialogue on security and sustainability of outer space, renewal of a science and technology agreement, recognising the critical role that women play in society and how to enhance and acknowledge their contribution, dealing with the threat of terrorism on land and sea, enhancing the bilateral counter-terrorism partnership, discussions on launching a partnership for climate resilience, re-commitment to implement a civil nuclear cooperation agreement, to work on providing sanitation for all and to establish an Indo-US investment initiative.
The popularity of Prime Minister Modi in the United States could be gauged from the way tens and thousands of Indian Americans gathered at the Andrews Air Force Base near Washington to wish him farewell, as also the crowds that gathered on every day of his five-day visit to cheer and welcome him at all events.
On Prime Minister Modi's decision to launch a "Swach Bharat (Clean India) campaign on Thursday (October 2), the 145th birth anniversary of the Father of the Nation, Mahatma Gnadhi, Advani said, "Even before the Prime Minister announced this campaign (Swach Bharat), we decided to work on it at district level meetings of Gandhinagar:"
The `Swach Bharat Abhiyaan' or 'Clean India' campaign is aimed at cleaning up India and improving sanitation facilities. Several arterial roads in and around Rajpath in New Delhi will remain closed on Thursday when Prime Minister Narendra Modi will launch the campaign and flag off a walkathon.
Approximately 5,000 schoolchildren will participate in the event to launch the cleanliness drive. The programme shall also be attended by government officers, diplomats and expats, representatives of corporate houses and Chamber of Commerce, faculty and students of universities/colleges etc.
According to an order issued by the Department of Personnel and Training (DoPT) some of the central government offices will be closed at 2 pm today, in connection with the arrangements for the nation-wide campaign tomorrow.
All the government offices located in Rashtrapati Bhawan and Parliament House would remain closed till 10.30 am tomorrow.
