Egypt president Abdel Fattah al-Sisi to be chief guest at Republic Day celebrations
New Delhi (PTI): Egypt's President Abdel Fattah al-Sisi will be the chief guest at the Republic Day celebrations in January, the Ministry of External Affairs said on Sunday.
"This is the first time that the President of the Arab Republic of Egypt will be the Chief Guest at our Republic Day," the MEA said in a statement.
Prime Minister Narendra Modi had sent a formal invitation to al-Sisi which was handed over to the Egyptian president by External Affairs Minister S Jaishankar on October 16.
Both countries are celebrating the 75th anniversary of the establishment of diplomatic relations this year.
Egypt has been invited as a 'Guest Country' during India's Presidency of G-20 in 2022-23, the statement said.
"India and Egypt enjoy warm and friendly relations based on civilisational and deep-rooted people-to-people ties," the statement said.
Leaders of friendly nations have graced the Republic Day celebrations since 1950, when the then Indonesian President Sukarno was invited as the chief guest.
In 1952, 1953 and 1966, the Republic Day celebrations were held without a foreign leader as chief guest.
In 2021, the then British prime minister Boris Johnson was invited as the chief guest but his visit had to be cancelled due to the rising COVID-19 cases in Britain.
This year, India had invited leaders of the five Central Asian Republics, who were to visit Delhi for the India-Central Asia Summit, as chief guests for the Republic Day celebrations.
However, the visit was cancelled due to rising COVID-19 cases in India. The India-Central Asia Summit was held in the virtual format.
In 2018, the entire Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) leadership comprising 10 heads of state was present at the Republic Day parade.
In 2020, the then Brazil president Jair Bolsonaro was the chief guest.
Former US President Barack Obama (2015), Russian President Vladimir Putin (2007), former French presidents Nicholas Sarkozy (2008) and Francois Hollande (2016) have also been chief guests at the Republic Day celebrations in the past.
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Attempted burglary reported at IndiaOne ATM in Uppinangady, one arrested
Uppinangady, Apr 10: An attempt was made to break into an IndiaOne ATM kiosk and steal cash from the machine in Kalleri of Karaya village near Uppinangady. The incident, which took place at a kiosk located in a cooperative society building at Thannirupantha, has prompted a police investigation, resulting in one arrest so far.
According to police sources, miscreants tried to force open the cash box of the ATM. CCTV footage from the kiosk showed individuals entering the premises and attempting to damage the security camera before targeting the ATM machine. Though the burglary was not successful, the ATM was left damaged in the process.
Staff from the IndiaOne call centre were alerted through the machine’s internal monitoring system. They visited the location and confirmed the attempted break-in. A formal complaint was lodged by Prashant D’Souza, following which Uppinangady Police registered a case and began investigation.
Police arrested a suspect in connection with the incident. Officers stated that the increasing number of break-in attempts at ATMs owned by private companies, despite enhanced security features, remains a concern. They added that the CCTV footage is being examined in detail to identify others who may have been involved.
