PM Modi France Visit: Prime Minister Narendra Modi was presented with several gifts from French President Emmanuel Macron during a private dinner on Thursday. PM Modi is on a two-day state visit to France. French President Macron has invited him as the chief guest at the Bastille Day parade.
PM Modi received these gifts from President Macron…
1. Photo dated July 14, 1916: PM Modi was presented with a photo that pays tribute to Indian soldiers who fought in Europe alongside France during World War I (1914-1918). It also highlights India and France’s long shared fight to protect universal values.
The picture shows a passer-by giving flowers to a Sikh officer of the Indian Expeditionary Force (IEF) posted in France.
This picture was taken by a photo reporter of the Meurice news agency on the Champs-Élysées during the July 14, 1916 military parade. The original copy of the photo is still in the National Library of France.
In World War I, approximately 1.3 million Indians volunteered to fight for Britain, including 877,000 combatants. More than 70,000 of them lost their lives, including about 9,000 in France and Belgium.
2. PM Modi was also gifted a reproduced version of the ‘Charlemagne’ chessmen, which represents the Indian origins of the game of chess and the long history of trade between India and Europe. The elephant piece in this is a reminder of the Indian origin of the game of chess, the expertise of French companies in terms of innovation and new technologies.
Chaturanga, the common ancestor of European and Chinese chess, appeared in India in the 7th century AD. Please tell that Prime Minister Modi himself is fond of chess. During his tenure as Chief Minister of Gujarat, he participated in the world record event for the largest number of simultaneous chess games played at one place in Ahmedabad in December 2010.
The ‘Charlemagne’ chess player is stored in the Cabinet des Médailles at the National Library of France and was previously in the treasury of the Basilica of Saint-Denis. Their name is derived from the legend which states that they were given as a gift to the Frankish emperor by the Abbasid Caliph Harun al-Rashid.
Indeed, given the equipment used by the characters and the presence of bishops as bishops, they were probably made in the late 11th century, in southern Italy.
3. English version of Marcel Proust, Le temps retrouvé (Time Regained), Pléiade and à la recherche du temps perdu (In Search of Lost Time)
Some famous and historical works of French literature were also presented to Prime Minister Modi. A la recherche du temps perdu (In Search of Lost Time) is a series of novels by Marcel Proust (1871–1922) published between 1913 and 1927 and considered one of the most important works of French literature of the early 20th century. Identified as
Le temps retrouvé (Time Regained) is its seventh and final volume, which was published posthumously.
The Bibliothèque de la Pléiade collection represents academic excellence and the most outstanding contribution of French authors to world culture. Since PM Modi does not speak French, this edition comes with its English translation.
The last two volumes of the original work, Albertine desparue (The Fugitive) and Le temps retrouvé (Time Regained), were published in 1989 in this volume IV of the Bibliothèque de la Pléiade’s A la recherche du temps perdu. It contains several drafts and outlines from the author.
The English version, Everyman’s Library, also includes the last two volumes of A la recherche du temps perdu. This translation was done by CK Scott Moncrieff (1889–1930), a contemporary of Proust and Proust’s original translator into English. As revised by Terence Kilmartin (1922–1991). This edition is considered one of the best English translations of Proust.
PM Modi gets highest French honor
Prime Minister Modi has also been awarded the highest French honor ‘Grand Cross of the Legion of Honour’. PM Modi has become the first Indian PM to receive this honour. The award recognizes the role of the Prime Minister in fostering excellent relations of friendship and trust between France and India.
PM Modi, who reached Paris on Thursday, was formally welcomed. He was received by French Prime Minister Elizabeth Borne and later PM Modi addressed the Indian diaspora in the French capital.
