Reuters | Photo credit: Reuters
India is a global leader with groundbreaking innovations, said American businessman and Microsoft founder Bill Gates as he joined Indian Americans for the first-ever India Independence Day celebrations at the newly opened Indian Consulate in Seattle.
Mr. Gates, Chairman of the Gates Foundation, marked the first India Day celebration in the Greater Seattle Region as Consulate General of India as Guest of Honor of Seattle on India’s 78th Independence Day, a press release said.
In his address to over 2,000 members of the Indian-American community, he called India “a global leader with groundbreaking innovations in areas such as technology, agriculture and healthcare.”
Mr Gates further said: “From the production of safe, low-cost vaccines to the remarkable leadership of the Indian diaspora to India’s digital public infrastructure – India’s ingenuity is helping not just Indians, but the world. Countries in the Global South are leveraging India’s experience to build their DPI systems.”
Other participants in the India Day celebration included Congresswoman Suzan DelBene, Congressman Kim Schrier, Congressman Adam Smith, Lieutenant General Xavier Brunson, Commander of America’s First Corps in Pacific NorthWest, Admiral Mark Sucato, Commander of the Navy Region of North West, Washington Lieutenant Governor Denny Heck and Washington Secretary of State Steve Hobbs and Chief Justice of the Washington Supreme Court Steve Gonzalez.
The event, for the first time in the Seattle area, showcased all the states and regions of India through floats and cultural performances celebrating the theme of Unity in Diversity.
Each of the floats was curated by prominent leaders of the Indian American community and reflected some important aspects of India’s rich cultural heritage.
To mark the occasion, five separate official proclamations were issued by governments/councils of King County, Bellevue City (Washington), Portland (Oregon), Hillsboro (Oregon) and Tigard (Oregon) in honor of the India Day celebration. Wyoming Governor Mark Gordon also sent a separate congratulatory message on India’s 78th Independence Day. Some iconic buildings in Seattle and Bellevue also lit up in tricolors to mark the India Day celebrations, the press release said.
