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PM Modi hosts lunch for Prince William and Kate Middleton: As it happened
Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Tuesday hosted lunch for Prince William and Kate Middleton, the Duke and Duchess of Cambridge, who are on a visit to India.
New Delhi: Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Tuesday hosted lunch for Prince William and Kate Middleton, the Duke and Duchess of Cambridge, who are on a visit to India. Here are the details:-
- Britain's Duke and Duchess of Cambridge sat down to a musical lunch on Tuesday with PM Narendra Modi
- PM Modi welcomed Prince William and wife Kate on the steps of Hyderabad House, once a princely residence and - like many buildings in New Delhi - designed by British architect Sir Edwin Lutyens.
- Kate wore a knee-length light blue dress, William a dark suit and tie, while their host - an observant vegetarian - appeared in a traditional white kurta and cream waistcoat.
- The four-course lunch featured Indian "veg" and "non-veg" cuisine but, citing protocol, declined to specify the dishes served. Renowned Indian classical musician Rahul Sharma played the santoor - a kind of dulcimer - rounding off his performance with the Beatles classic "Let It Be".
- PM Narendra Modi meets Duke and Duchess of Cambridge, Prince William and Kate Middleton
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- The Duke and Duchess of Cambridge will sit down for lunch with PM Narendra Modi on Tuesday, before travelling to the Kaziranga National Park
- Kaziranga National Park visit: The royal couple will then leave for Kaziranga National Park in Assam state where they will take a drive on Wednesday (April 13).
- Bhutan visit: The royal couple will travel to Bhutan for two days beginning April 14.
- Taj visit: On April 16, they will visit Taj Mahal in northern Agra city before flying back to Britain.
- The royal couple flew to New Delhi on Wednesday afternoon, where they laid a wreath at the Amar Jawan Jyoti memorial to honor soldiers who had died in World War I.
- The Duke and Duchess of Cambridge on Monday visited Gandhi Smriti and paid tributes to Mahatma Gandhi. Prince William later said Queen Elizabeth II was very fond of India and it was "enormously important" to her.
- The British royals arrived at Gandhi Smriti on Tees January Marg after laying a wreath at the Amar Jawan Jyoti -- the eternal flame memorial dedicated to the 'Unknown Soldier' -- at India Gate.
- The Duchess and the Duke of Cambridge visited Gandhi's memorial and paid tributes at the 'Martyr's Column' -- the spot where Gandhi was assassinated.
- The couple was accorded a traditional welcome with a stole each of handspun khadi, and were shown around the museum which houses articles related to the Father of the Nation.
- The Duke and the Duchess also met around 30 schoolchildren, who sang 'bhajans' that gave the message of peace, as propagated by Gandhi.
Queen's 90th birthday: The royal couple later attended an official garden party reception at the British High Commissioner's official residence here to celebrate the Queen's 90th birthday.
William and Kate are traveling without their two children - 2 1/2-year-old Prince George and 11-month-old Princess Charlotte. They had taken George to Australia with them in 2014 on their last royal tour.