A day before mega summit, PM Modi holds roadshow, bilateral meetings

The two leaders, who were in a car, were escorted by huge security cover as people, mobilised from different parts of the city, flanked both sides of the barricaded road. Jamalpur resident Shaheen Shaikh, an office bearer of the BJP, said she got around 300 people to witness the roadshow and greet the two leaders.
A number of Ahmedabad Municipal Transport Service (AMTS) buses were seen bringing people to the road show. “I have come to see Modi saheb.

Since the UAE president is our guest, I came to greet and welcome him,” said Bapunagar resident Salma Shaikh who was among the many people who came to the roadshow. Similarly, Jagdish Prajapati, who lives near Indira bridge, had come with his daughter Snehal to see Modi.

Children holding national flags gather to welcome Modi and UAE President Mohamed bin Zayed Al Nahyan during a roadshow in Ahmedabad on Tuesday. (Express File Photo)

Elaborate arrangements were also made on the route with banners of the two leaders and posters welcoming the UAE president to Gujarat. The entire stretch of the roadshow was also dotted with 15 stages with dancers performing various dance forms of the country.

Later, a bilateral meeting was held between the PM and Nahyan where several MoUs were signed.

Earlier in the day, Modi held separate bilateral meetings with Timor-Leste President José Ramos-Horta and Mozambique President Filipe Jacinto Nyusi. Horta was the first head of state to arrive in Ahmedabad for the summit on Monday night.

The Prime Minister offered assistance to Timor-Leste in capacity building, human resource development, IT, fintech, energy and healthcare, including traditional medicine and pharma. He also invited the nation to join the International Solar Alliance (ISA) and the Coalition for Disaster Resilient Infrastructure (CDRI), a government statement said.

Horta expressed “strong support for India’s permanent membership of the UN Security Council”, the statement added.

While Modi congratulated Horta for the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN’s) in-principle decision to admit Timor-Leste as its 11th member and expressed hope for its attainment of full membership soon, the latter sought New Delhi’s support to meet its development priorities, particularly in the areas of healthcare and capacity building in IT.

The two leaders also discussed regional issues and developments in the Indo-Pacific.

India was one of the first countries to establish diplomatic ties with Timor-Leste in 2002 after it became independent.

PM Modi with Timor-Leste President José Ramos-Horta during a bilateral meeting (Express File Photo)

Soon after the meeting, Modi took to X to announce that he “had an excellent meeting” with Ramos-Horta at Mahatma Mandir in Gandhinagar. He added that the meeting venue was “even more special considering Gandhiji’s influence on President Horta’s life and work.”

Later, PM Modi also met Mozambique President Nyusi and held “productive discussions on ways to further bilateral ties, including in the areas of defence, counter terrorism, energy, health, trade & investment, agriculture, water security, mining, capacity building and maritime cooperation. The Prime Minister suggested that the two countries could work to enhance air connectivity to give a boost to business, culture and people to people relations”.

Issues related to cooperation in multilateral fora, including the UN, were also discussed, the release stated.

Nyusi landed in Ahmedabad on Tuesday. Both Nyusi and Horta were received by Chief Minister Bhupendra Patel.