VADODARA: Prime Minister Narendra Modi and Spanish President Pedro Sanchez during their Vadodara roadshow paused to meet Divyang (differently-abled) artist Diya Gosai, a student from MS University, who was eagerly waiting along the route with her artwork.
Diya, a talented painter, had positioned herself along the road holding framed portraits she had created of both Prime Minister Modi and President Sanchez. As the leaders’ convoy approached, the two Prime Ministers noticed her display and decided to stop. Both leaders stepped out of their open jeeps to greet Diya, who had been looking forward to their arrival.
According to an official statement, “The entire caravan of the road show passed from the side and both Prime Ministers’ eyes fell on this girl.” Diya then presented the portraits to PM Modi and President Sanchez, who “gladly accepted” her gift, expressing their best wishes for her future.
This unique moment added a memorable highlight to the roadshow, held to celebrate the two leaders’ visit to inaugurate Tata Advanced Systems Ltd’s aircraft assembly plant in Vadodara.
Prime Minister Narendra Modi and President of the Government of Spain, Pedro Sanchez, jointly inaugurated the TATA Aircraft Complex for manufacturing C-295 aircraft at the TATA Advanced Systems Limited (TASL) Campus in Vadodara.
During the event, Sanchez highlighted the cultural and industrial ties between India and Spain while reminiscing about the collaboration between renowned Spanish guitarist Paco de Lucia and Indian musician Ravi Shankar in the late 1960s.
Sanchez said, “In the late 1960s, the talented Paco de Lucia and the great Indian musician Ravi Shankar brought our two countries closer through music. Together they managed to fuse flamenco and Indian classical music, Spanish guitar with the spirituality of the sitar. Perhaps they did not know it then, but they were building a bridge between cultures that would open the way to the future. A future that has the face of a project like this. This plant will be a symbol of industrial excellence, an engine of growth, and a testament to the close and growing friendship.”
A total of 56 aircraft are there under the C-295 programme, of which 16 are being delivered directly by Airbus from Spain and the remaining 40 are to be made in India. Tata Advanced Systems Ltd is responsible for making these 40 aircraft in India. This facility will be the first private sector Final Assembly Line (FAL) for military aircraft in India. (ANI)