3-day India tour of UN Secy Gen Antonio Guterres begins on Tue

NEW DELHI: UN Secretary General Antonio Guterres will be on a three-day visit to India starting Tuesday, during which he will pay tributes to the victims of the 26/11 terror attacks at the Taj Mahal Palace hotel in Mumbai, besides holding talks with his Indian interlocutors.

It will be the first visit of Guterres to India since his second term in office commenced in January. He had earlier visited the country in October 2018 during his first term at the top office.

The UN secretary general will join Prime Minister Narendra Modi at an event relating to the Mission LiFE (Lifestyle for Environment) in Gujarat's Kevadiya on October 20.

His visit to the country comes more than a week before the UN Security Council Counter-Terrorism Committee holds two-day deliberations in India.

''Antonio Guterres, the Secretary-General of the United Nations, will be on an official visit to India from October 18-20,'' the Ministry of External Affairs (MEA) said.

It said Guterres will commence his visit to India by paying tributes to the victims of the 26/11 terror attacks at the Taj Mahal Palace hotel in Mumbai. He will also deliver a public address at Indian Institute of Technology (IIT), Mumbai on the subject -- ''India @75: UN-India Partnership: Strengthening South-South Cooperation.'' The Taj Mahal Palace hotel was one of the targets of the horrific 26/11 terror attacks nearly 14 years ago.

The MEA said External Affairs Minister S Jaishankar would hold bilateral discussions with Guterres on issues of global concern, steps to deepen India's engagement with the UN, including through the country's upcoming presidency of the G20.

It said Guterres will attend the launch of the Mission LiFE booklet, logo and tagline in Kevadiya on October 20.

The concept of LiFE was introduced by Modi during the COP26 at Glasgow in November last year.

The prime minister had then urged the global community of individuals and institutions to drive LiFE as an international mass movement towards ''mindful and deliberate utilisation, instead of mindless and destructive consumption'' to protect and preserve the environment.

''Mission LiFE will be India's signature initiative at the United Nations and other international platforms for showcasing climate action and early achievement of the Sustainable Development Goals,'' the MEA said.

''Its central idea reflects India's ethos of respect for mother nature and aims at piloting a focused programme that will mobilise one billion (100 crore) Indians to become pro-planet people (3P), who would practise simple environment and climate-friendly behaviour and actions in their daily lives to promote a shared commitment to protect our planet,'' it added.

In Kevadiya, Guterres is expected to pay floral tributes at the Statue of Unity, the MEA said, adding that he will also visit the country's first solar-powered village in Modhera (Gujarat) and other development projects in the area.

The UN secretary general will also visit the Sun temple in Modhera, before departing for his onward destination, according to the MEA.