India
Faure, visited the Ashram around 10 am and spent over 30 minutes there.
Updated : Jun 24, 2018, 04:38 AM IST
Seychelles President Danny Faure, who arrived in Ahmedabad on Friday, visited the Gandhi Ashram on Saturday.
Faure, visited the Ashram around 10 am and spent over 30 minutes there. The President, who is on a six-day visit to India, visited the archive centre, the library and the Hriday Kunj. He also tried his hand at the Charkha.
In the visitors book, Faure wrote about the need to teach non-violence to children of the world. "The principle of non-violence is what we need to teach the children of our world, and what was expressed by Gandhi many years ago remains relevant today. An eye for an eye will make the whole world blind," the President wrote.
Kartikeya Sarabhai, trustee of Sabarmati Ashram Preservation & Memorial Trust, said the President was particularly interested in Gandhi's ideas about non-violence.
"He wanted to see the collected works of Gandhi in which the Father of Nation wrote the quote 'An eye for an eye will make the whole world blind'. The President wanted to know the context in which Gandhiji made the statement. We will be sending it to him soon," said Sarabhai.
He said Faure who came earlier than his schedule got to spend some extra time at the Ashram. "We also took him through the gallery that showcased Gandhi's time in the Ashram in Ahmedabad which was also a time of turbulence as there was a textile mill workers strike at that time. He was also fascinated by the rules in place for those living in the Ashram," said Sarabhai.
He said the Ashram also informed the President about its fellowship programme on non-violence and how someone from Seychelles can be a future candidate. "The fellow will not only be able to spend three months at the Ashram as part of the fellowship but will also be able to take back the teachings to the school and colleges in Seychelles," said Sarabhai.
Faure also tried his hands on the spinning wheel (charkha) at the ashram and understood the process of producing Khadi strands. The president was gifted three books on Gandhian philosophy by the Ashram and in return he gifted a book on his own country.
The President also visited the Indian Institute of Management Ahmedabad (IIMA) campus and interacted with Director, Prof. Errol D'Souza, Dean Programmes, Prof Shailesh Gandhi, and Chairperson of the JSW School of Public Policy, Prof. Vijaya Sherry Chand. The president took a short tour of the Heritage campus.
He later visited the various facilities at the Gujarat Forensic Sciences University (GFSU) and also expressed willingness to sign a memorandum of understanding (MoU) between his country and the GFSU in the cyber defence and security sector, a release said.
Before leaving for Goa, Faure, visited the Raj Bhavan in Gandhinagar, where Governor OP Kohli hosted lunch for him.