Officials representing Taipei and India at the weekend celebrated “three decades of friendship” between the two nations at the Taipei Lantern Festival, which features lanterns of landmarks and technological achievements of India.
Taipei Mayor Chiang Wan-an (蔣萬安) and India-Taipei Association (ITA) Director-General Manharsinh Laxmanbhai Yadav attended the opening of the event.
The light features and sculptures were made by staff at the association, which is participating for the first time to mark 30 years since it was established, to celebrate the deepening ties between the people of both countries, it said in a statement.
Photo courtesy of the India-Taipei Association
Yadav and other ITA officials invited Taiwanese and foreign guests to visit the India display at the Beimen International Friendship Area.
The festival runs through Feb. 16, with light shows from 5pm to 10pm each evening.
The association’s display symbolizes 30 years of enduring friendship and cultural exchanges between the two sides, and presents India’s progress, resilience and vision, as well as showcasing its engineering and scientific achievements, the statement said.
Lanterns depicting the India Gate — an arch commemorating the Indian soldiers killed in World War I — and Parliament House, both in New Delhi, are among those on display, along with others portraying India Rail’s high-speed Vande Bharat Express, and the nation’s success with the Chandrayaan-3 space mission, which completed an uncrewed moon landing in August 2023, ITA officials said.
Two other lanterns are based on the Narendra Modi Stadium in Ahmedabad, which primarily hosts cricket, and Kevadia’s Statue of Unity — the world’s tallest at 182m, which depicts former Indian deputy prime minister Sardar Patel, the statement said.
The statue and the stadium are prominent sites in Gujarat state, it said.
In a Lunar New Year video released on Jan. 26, Yadav said that Taiwan and India have made great strides together in semiconductor development and other industrial collaborations, as well as cultural cooperation and education partnerships.
These have significantly deepened the bond between the two sides, he said.
Both sides are enhancing cooperation in traditional medicine, education and investment, and have reached a labor agreement to import workers, he said, adding that this would enhance the bilateral relationship.
Separately, the ITA said that it is hosting a special booth at the Taipei International Book Exhibition, which began yesterday and runs through Sunday at the Taipei World Trade Center.
The booth would highlight India’s contributions to space exploration literature, including science fiction, and feature reports on India’s progress in the aerospace industry, it said.
Artists and academics are to speak at the exhibition about India’s classical narrative style, it added.
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