Gina Raimondo, the US Secretary of Commerce who is on an official visit to India, attended the Holi celebration at Defence Minister Rajnath Singh's residence on Wednesday (08).
Speaking to ANI, Raimondo expressed her delight in participating in the Holi celebration with the people and said, "It's an honour for me to be here on such a holiday. I felt so welcomed by the Minister, it's fantastic. Happy Holi!"
At Rajnath Singh's residence, in addition to Raimondo, Piyush Goyal, the Union Minister of Commerce and Industry, Consumer Affairs, Food and Public Distribution, and Textiles, Anurag Thakur, the Union Minister for Sports, Youth Affairs and Minister of Information and Broadcasting, and BJP MP Manoj Tiwari, were also in attendance. External Affairs Minister S Jaishankar and Union Law Minister Kiren Rijiju were also present on the occasion.
"Hearty congratulations and best wishes to all of you on the occasion of Holi. A symbol of joy, gaiety and harmony, may this festival fill your life with new colours of success, happiness and good health," Rajnath Singh said in the tweet.
The US Secretary of Commerce was observed dancing and playing the drum during the celebration.
Taking to Twitter Rajnath Singh wrote, "Hearty congratulations and best wishes to all of you on the occasion of Holi. A symbol of joy, gaiety and harmony, may this festival fill your life with new colours of success, happiness and good health."
During her 4-day visit to India, Raimondo is scheduled to take part in the Indo-US Commercial Dialogue and CEO Forum on March 10, 2023.
As per the statement released by the US Department of Commerce, the US-India Commercial Dialogue and CEO Forum aim to explore cooperation in diverse sectors that could open up new trade and investment prospects between the two nations.
"Through the CEO Forum, the Commercial Dialogue, and IPEF, we are making excellent progress in bringing our countries closer together by creating new markets for trade, expanding those that already exist, and reinforcing our shared commitment to democracy," Raimondo said, ahead of her visit to India, in a statement.
The Commercial Dialogue is a cooperative effort that involves regular government-to-government meetings in conjunction with private sector meetings to facilitate trade and maximise investment opportunities in various sectors.
The last India-USA Commercial Dialogue was held in February 2019, and due to the pandemic and other factors, it could not be held since then.
The India-US CEO Forum, which aims to increase supply chain resilience, enhance energy security, reduce greenhouse gas emissions, and facilitate post-pandemic economic recovery, was launched in November 2022 via video conference.
With inputs from ANI
