High Commissioner of Republic of India to South Africa, Prabhat Kumar has this weekend led different festivities in Pretoria, to commemorate January 26, 1950 - the day the Indian constitution came into force.
The celebrations at India House in Waterkloof, City of Tshwane on Sunday were preluding other events celebrating the 76th Republic Day of India anniversary.
On Saturday evening, Kumar hosted several members of the academia, journalists, businesspeople and diplomats at a feisty celebration hosted at the University of South Africa, characterized by a fusion of Indian and South African cultural heritage.
Attendees were kept on their feet with electric dance moves and gaudy beats from Punjab after the Indian Council for Cultural Relations (ICCR) sponsored a 12-member-strong dance troupe to travel to South Africa from India. The Punjab outfit gelled seamlessly with South African Oriental Fire dance group on stage – making it an evening to remember for the jubilant crowd which packed the ZK Matthews Great Hall at Unisa.
Performers enchanted attendees which packed the ZK Matthews Great Hall at Unisa.
In an exclusive interview with IOL, High Commissioner Kumar narrated the importance of the January 26 Republic Day celebrations.
“India got independence in 1947, on August 15, which we celebrate as Independence Day but the constitution was drafted from 1947 to 1949 and then it was adopted on November 26 1949. However, the constitution came into force on January 26, 1950. That is the importance of this day, that the constitution of India came into force in 1950 and we became a republic,” said Kumar.
High Commissioner of Republic of India to South Africa, Prabhat Kumar has this weekend led different festivities in Pretoria, to mark the January 26 adoption of the Indian constitution in 1950.
Kumar expressed delight at the musical performances from both Indian and South African groups, which he described as a “marriage” of the two cultures.
“Actually, South Africa and India are very closely linked from 1860 onwards, the time Indians started coming as indentured labour but also remember other people also came. Mahatma Gandhi came to South Africa in 1893 and went back in 1915. He was here for 21 years. So, the link is very strong,” he said.
The diplomat also highlighted that around 1.7 million people of Indian origin are proudly South African.
