Dubai: An Indian minister will reveal more details of the India pavilion at Expo 2020 at an event in Dubai on Saturday, a senior Indian diplomat told Gulf News.
Indian Minister of Commerce and Industry Piyush Goyal will unveil the design of the four-storey pavilion that would be located in the Opportunity District at the Expo site, Consul General of India in Dubai Vipul said.
“The presentation during the formal unveiling of the design by the minister will show how the pavilion will look like and explain the main activities planned throughout the duration of the Expo.”
He said the pavilion would represent “the rich history and culture of India, the close ties between India and the UAE, the states of India and the corporate India… in short, India in its full diversity.”
Vipul said the India pavilion will be built in a 4800 square mertre plot closer to the UAE pavilion. “That should ensure good footfall into the India pavilion.”
On Sunday, Goyal, who is also the minister of railways, will tour the Expo 2020 site and visit the India pavilion’s plot to oversee various aspects related to the construction.
The plot was handed over to the Indian authorities early last month, said Vipul.
Construction began at the plot just before the UAE visit of the Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi, according to the Bureau International des Expositions (BIE).
Artist’s impression
In a tweet shared on August 22, BIE posted an artist’s impression of the pavilion and said it would “showcase the country’s strengths in innovation and start-ups in the hi-tech sector.”
The artist’s impression shows a portion of the main building with a façade covered by images of leaves. The India pavilion’s name is written in Arabic and Hindi.
At the entrance is a giant statue of Mahatma Gandhi, India’s Father of the Nation, and another two-storey structure adjacent to the main building.
Sharing the same image the next day on Twitter, Dubai Media Office said: “India’s pavilion at @expo2020dubai will take its visitors in a journey through 5,000 years of Indian civilisation. The pavilion will also showcase the country’s strength in innovation and tech.”
Deadlines
India’s Minister for Housing and Urban Affairs, Hardeep Singh Puri, said the pavilion’s structural work would be completed by December 2019 and civil works would be complete by March 2020.
“The entire pavilion with interiors and curation will be ready in August 2020, well in time for the inauguration of the Expo in October,” he had tweeted after a meeting with senior officials of the Department of Commerce to decide the deadlines and plans for the construction of the pavilion.
Top businessmen, professionals and other stakeholders will be present during the event on Saturday, Vipul said. The event is being organised in association with the Indian Business and Professional Council in Dubai and the Federation of Indian Chambers of Commerce and Industry.
