Zulu king meets Indian delegates
INDIANS and Zulus should join hands to make KwaZulu-Natal a better place, says King Goodwill Zwelithini.
The monarch visited India House, the official residence of the Indian consul-general in Durban, for the first time on Saturday.
The meeting with the Indian delegation was “very historic as we embark on developing our nations together”, he told POST.
Indian High Commissioner Ruchi Ghanashyam was accompanied by deputy S Janakiraman; Shashank Vikram, consul- general of India in Durban; KJ Srinivasa, consul-general of India in Johannesburg; and SKS Rawat of the Consulate of India in Durban.
The king was accompanied by Queen Buhle kaMathe Zulu and his “adopted” son, local businessman and philanthropist Ishwar Ramlutchman Mabheka Zulu, who is a full member of the iziNyosi regiment.
Ramlutchman said several issues were discussed, including bilateral relations between India and South Africa, skills development and co-operation in agriculture.
“Food security needs to be looked into. We need all our land to be cultivated and must produce enough food to sustain the people living in our province,” the king said.
Ramlutchman said the king had requested that all Indians and Zulus work together for the betterment of KZN.
“I feel very honoured today as a person of Indian origin and an adopted son of His Majesty to be part of this historic day when the monarch engages with the Indian government,” he said. “We give thanks to Dr Shashank Vikram, the consul-general of India, who made this meeting possible.”
Ghanashyam also briefed the king on the Indian Technical and Economic Co-operation (ITEC) programme by the government of India for students, which offers technical training programmes in India, including in the fields of agriculture, rural entrepreneurship development and IT.
“It was a great honour to have His Majesty the King visit India House in Durban with the queen,” Ghanashyam told the Press Trust of India news agency.
To mark his visit, King Zwelithini planted a mango sapling at India House.