Watch: British PM Boris Johnson spins charkha at Sabarmati Ashram

In a note penned in the visitor’s book of Sabarmati Ashram, Johnson paid tribute to Gandhi, saying, “It is an immense privilege to come to the Ashram of this extraordinary man and to understand how he mobilised such simple principles of truth and non-violence to change the world to get better.”

Johnson was also gifted a copy of the autobiography of Madeleine Slade, better known as Mirabehn, who was the daughter of a British admiral who later went on to become a disciple of Gandhi.

In a note penned in the visitor’s book of Sabarmati Ashram, Johnson paid tribute to Gandhi, saying, “It is an immense privilege to come to the Ashram of this extraordinary man. (Express/Nirmal Harindran)

During his visit, Johnson is expected to announce a draft of commercial agreements and hail a “new era” in bilateral trade and investment ties with India, the UK High Commission said on Thursday. The UK and Indian businesses are set to announce investments and export deals worth over £1 billion, in areas from software engineering to health. Apart from this, the countries are also expected to announce science and tech collaborations, including a digital health partnership and a joint investment fund for Indian deep-tech and AI start-ups; new AI scholarships for Indian students jointly funded by the UK government’s Chevening programme and India’s Adani Group; and a £6 million investment by AI healthcare specialists Qure.ai to open a centre of excellence in the UK.

Johnson will also visit the Gandhi Ashram today, and later go to Gujarat Biotechnology University, Akshardham temple in Gandhinagar, and also a plant of JCB company at Halol near Vadodara city.

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