Mongolian President gifts horse to Defence Minister Rajnath Singh
Ulaanbaatar, Sep 7: Rajnath Singh, the first Indian Defence Minister to visit Mongolia, was gifted a majestic horse by President Ukhnaagiin Khurelsukh on Wednesday, seven years after Prime Minister Narendra Modi received a similar gift from the leadership of this country.
"A special gift from our special friends in Mongolia. I have named this magnificent beauty, Tejas'. Thank you, President Khurelsukh. Thank you Mongolia," Singh tweeted on Wednesday along with pictures of the white horse.
In one of the pictures, Singh is seen admiring the seven-year-old horse of Mongol breed while in another he is holding a framed picture of the equine gift.
An official source in Delhi said that the horse will not be brought to India. "It's a symbolic gift. The horse will remain in Mongolia," the source told PTI.
On Tuesday, Singh called on President Khurelsukh and reviewed the strategic bilateral ties.
"Excellent meeting with the President of Mongolia, H.E. U. Khurelsukh in Ulaanbaatar. Recalled my last meeting with him in 2018, when he was the Prime Minister of the country. We are fully committed to further deepening our multifaceted Strategic Partnership with Mongolia," Singh said in a tweet.
The Mongolian President expressed satisfaction with the expansion of relations and cooperation with India, Mongolia's important third neighbour while pointing out that the official visit of Prime Minister Narendra Modi to Mongolia in 2015, and the ongoing visit of the Defence Minister Singh are the important impetus for further development.
Khurelsukh also said that there is a full possibility of elevating the strategic partnership between the two countries to a comprehensive strategic partnership, Mongolia's Montsame national news agency reported.
In 2015, Prime Minister Modi received a special gift a brown racehorse from his then Mongolian counterpart Chimed Saikhanbileg during his historic visit to this country.
The horse was named Kanthaka'.
Mongolia is known as the land of the horse, according to the American Museum of Natural History (AMNH).
Mongolia is home to more than 3 million horses, making the horse population almost equal to the human population in the vast nation.
Even in the 21st century, Mongolia remains a horse-based culture and retains its pastoral traditions.
Meanwhile, Singh also visited the Gandan Monastery in Mongolia on Wednesday.
"Raksha Mantri Shri @rajnathsingh visited the Gandan Monastery in Mongolia today and interacted with the highest Buddhist monk of the country," the Defence Minister of India tweeted.
Defence Minister Singh is on a five-day visit to Mongolia and Japan from Monday with an aim to expand India's strategic and defence ties with the two countries in the backdrop of evolving regional security matrix and geo-political turmoil.
Singh's visit to Mongolia from September 5 to 7 is the first-ever tour to the East Asian country by an Indian defence minister.
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Tripura min thanks Centre for clearing final location survey for new railway line
Agartala (PTI): Tripura Transport Minister Sushanta Chowdhury has thanked Prime Minister Narendra Modi and Railways Minister Ashwani Vaishnaw for clearing the final location survey (FLS) for a new rail line between Jirania and Bodhjungnagar industrial estate in West Tripura.
The Ministry of Railways has accorded sanction for conducting an FLS for the construction of a new line, the NFR said in a statement on Monday.
The estimated cost of the 14-km stretch will be Rs 42 lakh, and the approval marks an important step toward strengthening railway infrastructure and enhancing industrial activities in the northeastern state, it said.
"The approval for the construction of this new railway line is an important step in strengthening the railway infrastructure in the state and increasing the mobility of various industries in the industrial city of Bodhjungnagar," the transport minister said in a Facebook post on Monday.
"The proposed new Jirania-Bodhjungnagar railway line, if commissioned, will play an important role as a rail corridor for the transport of goods from the industrial city of Bodhjungnagar and which will benefit the people of the state, including businessmen," he added.
After the completion of this survey, the construction of the new railway line will help encourage further industrial development in the districts adjoining West Tripura, which will significantly boost the local economy, he said.
"This important project will play a special role in improving the railway connectivity in the state and boost the economic growth of the region," the minister added.
"I express my heartfelt gratitude to Prime Minister Narendra Modi, Chief Minister Manik Saha and Railway Minister Ashwini Vaishnaw for taking this step," he added.
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