Greece will plant 150 trees in capital Athens to commemorate Mahatma Gandhi's 150th birthday. The decision was taken after a meeting between Greek Environment Minister Kostas Skrekas and Indian Ambassador to Greece, Amrit Lugun.
In an article, news website Greek City Times said: "In commemoration of Mahatma Gandhi’s 150th birthday, 150 trees will be planted in Athens. Gandhi, born Mohandas Karamchand Gandhi, became the face of India’s nonviolent resistance against British colonial rule and is immortalised throughout the world, including with a statue at Westminster."
Mahatma Gandhi remains an icon of Indian Independence not just in India but among European nations as well. He is credited with making the independence movement a mass movement, igniting the spark for freedom across all sections of a diverse Indian society. What has led to his immense popularity is the way he led and sustained a peaceful revolt against colonial rule, surprising friends and foes alike.
The Indian embassy in Greece tweeted: "Greece to honour #MahatmaGandhi 's 150th Birth Anniversary by planting 150 trees in Athens."
Greek Environment Minister Skrekas said: "In the context of the close relationship between our two friendly peoples, we will soon proceed in cooperation with the Embassy of India to [complete] planting 150 trees in Athens to honour the 150th anniversary of his birth."
Importantly, Skrekas announced that his country will join the International Solar Alliance (ISA), co-led by India and France to promote solar energy globally. The ISA, set up in 2015 by India and France, has become one of the largest member organisations in the world after the UN. It was conceived as a coalition of solar-resource-rich countries that lie between the tropics. It aims at promoting cooperation among solar-resource-rich countries, by bringing together governments, bilateral and multilateral organizations, the private sector and other stakeholders.
Diplomatic relations between India and Greece were established in 1950 even though the two civilisational societies trace their ties back to 2,500 years.
A fortnight back, on March 25, during the bicentennial celebrations of the Greek War of Independence against the Ottoman Empire, the Indian ambassador wrote in an article. "Both, India and Greece, are ancient civilizations and modern democracies. Greece is where the idea of democracy originated, and India happens to be the world’s largest democracy," Lugun said.
Despite the pandemic, relations between the two countries are improving. If the pandemic recides, the two might also launch a direct flight between Delhi and Athens. External Affairs Minister Dr S. Jaishankar was supposed to visit Athens last year but had to cancel his visit owing to the coronavirus pandemic. He, instead, held a virtual meeting with his Greek counterpart Nikos Dendias to strengthen cooperation in defence and technology.
In a recent article, Greek journalist and geopolitical analyst Paul Antonopoulos, draws historical and cultural similarities between the two nations. He says though both the civilisations have survived time, they could not flourish due to invasions. He says now is the time for the two countries to forge closer ties on the basis of philosophy, knowledge and technology.
