Mahant Swami Maharaj, the sixth spiritual successor of Bhagwan Swaminarayan and the spiritual head of BAPS Swaminarayan Sanstha, will also preside over the foundation stone laying ceremony of the BAPS Hindu Mandir in Abu Dhabi.
New Delhi: The Foundation Stone Laying Ceremony (Shilanyas Vidhi) of the first traditional Hindu Mandir in Abu Dhabi being built in Abu Dhabi, UAE will take place on 20th April.
The foriegn minister of UAE, Sheikh Abdullah Bin Zayed Al Nahyan, UAE Minister of Tolerance, Sheikh Nahayan Mabarak Al Nahayan & Indian envoy to UAE Navdeep Suri will be present on the occasion.
Mahant Swami Maharaj, the sixth spiritual successor of Bhagwan Swaminarayan and the spiritual head of BAPS Swaminarayan Sanstha, will also preside over the foundation stone laying ceremony of the BAPS Hindu Mandir in Abu Dhabi.
Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi witnessed the ground-breaking ceremony of a temple being constructed in Abu Dhabi through live feed and unveiled a replica of the temple complex in Dubai in February of last year during his visit to the country.
Speaking at the ceremony back then PM said, “The first traditional temple in Abu Dhabi will act as a catalyst for the flourishment of humanitarian values and harmony between the two countries. The temple will become a medium for India’s identity.”
The UAE government in 2015 had decided to allot a plot of land near Abu Dhabi for construction of a temple during PM Modi's first visit to the west Asian country.
Later in 2017, the Crown Prince of Abu Dhabi His Highness Sheikh Mohammed bin Zayed al Nahyan gifted a 13.7-acre plot of land at Abu Mureikheh, mid-way between Abu Dhabi and Dubai, to enable the building of the temple. Additional 13 acres was given for parking.
The Indian community is financing the project and RSP, a Singapore-based architectural practice is the lead consultant and designer for the BAPS Hindu Mandir. Construction is expected to be completed by 2020.
The construction of the temple comes even as UAE is becoming an international hub for many industries like Aviation, media etc and the crown prince focusing on a "vision of tolerance and religious harmony". UAE itself is marking 2019 as the year of tolerance.
UAE-India ties in the last few years have grown manifold especially with a number of high-level visits. Indian PM Modi first visited the country in August of 2015 which was followed by the visit of Crown Prince of Abu Dhabi Sheikh Mohamed bin Zayed Al Nahyan in 2016. The following year the Crown Prince was the chief guest at India's republic day parade and again in 2018 PM Modi visited the country and was the chief guest at the sixth World Government Summit in Dubai. UAE is one the very few countries where PM Modi has visited twice. PM was few weeks ago was honoured by the highest civilian award -The Zayed Medal--of the country.
Earlier this year, in a first, UAE invited India as a guest of honour at the organisation of Islamic cooperation foreign ministers meet despite reservations from Pakistan.
More than 3 million Indians have made the country there home and there are approximately 1000 direct flights per week between various destinations of India and the UAE.
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 "Prime Minister Narendra Modi shakes hands with Sheikh Mohammed bin Zayed Al Nahyan, Crown Prince of Abu DhabI")
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