– Ambassador Mahalingam bids farewell to Guyana

By Tajeram Mohabir
PRIME Minister Moses Nagamootoo has hailed the five decades of friendship between Guyana and India and praised the work of outgoing Indian High Commissioner, Venkatachalam Mahalingam, for strengthening those relations.

Speaking at a gala dinner at the Pegasus Hotel to celebrate 50 years of friendship between the two nations and to honour Mr Mahalingam, Prime Minister Nagamootoo said the diplomat has left a lasting impression on Guyana.

“As you were reminded when you were recently received by President Granger, your name is indelibly linked to the commissioning of the Indian Arrival Monument at Palmyra. This historic monument is a testimony to continuity in governance, as it was conceived under the former government as a public good, and was completed under the present government,” Mr Nagamootoo said.

He added: “Your name will also be associated with the Centre of Excellence in Information Technology which was commissioned at the University of Guyana. Though this is a joint initiative between India and Guyana, we are grateful that India committed US$1 million towards a futuristic project which, according to President Granger ‘is a step on the path towards building the human resource capacity that drives the development of the digital state’.”

Guyana, he told the Pegasus gathering, has also benefited from several bilateral agreements, which have positively impacted national development.

Indian Nationals such as doctors, engineers and teachers continue to contribute to the socio-economic development of Guyana. Notably, a national award was conferred upon an Indian educator, for his role in promoting innovations in agriculture.

In addition, the prime minister pointed out that the close cultural bonds between the two nations continue to grow, through the Indian Culture Centre, established in 1972.
Many Guyanese continue to benefit from yoga, traditional dance and music, culinary skills in Indian dishes, and promotion of sari among women.

India has also aided Guyana in capacity-building through the Indian Technical and Economic Cooperation (ITEC) programme and has promoted, over the years, invaluable training to young Guyanese in the fields of education, agriculture, science and technology.
“Looking ahead, Guyana and India have signed memoranda in the field of energy, and our Government has placed collaboration in the area of renewable energy as a priority within the context of Guyana’s Green State Development Strategy (GSDS),” the prime minister said.

Ambassador Mahalingam, in remarks, praised the warmth and hospitality bestowed on him during his five years in Guyana. He said India, among others, believes in economic cooperation and non-discrimination and lauded the excellent relations his country has enjoyed with Guyana over the past 50 years.

Guyana and India, he said, share some notable similarities. Both Guyana and India have multi-racial populations and at one time were under British colonial rule.
These, the diplomat said, have contributed to binding the two nations together, a friendship which intensified over the past five years.

More high-level delegations from Guyana visited India in the past five years compared to the number which visited in the past 30 years.

Also, during the past five years, more than 600 Guyanese benefitted from training under the Indian Technical and Economic Corporation Programme and other schemes.
Guyana and India, Mr Mahalingam said, also enjoyed healthy trade relations even though there is much room for improvement.

The High Commission of India was established in Georgetown in May 1965. The Commission was made into a full-fledged High Commission of India in 1968. The Indian Cultural Centre was set up in 1972.

The relationship between India and Guyana ever since the independence of Guyana in May 1966 has been close and cordial with a high degree of understanding.
The warmth in the relation remains unaffected with changes in governments, either in India or in Guyana. The late Shrimati Indira Gandhi, the then Prime Minister of India, visited Guyana in 1968;the late Dr. Shankar Dayal Sharma, the then Vice President of India, visited Guyana in 1988; and Shri Bhairon Singh Shekhawat, the then Vice President of India, came on a state visit to Guyana in 2006.