UPDATE: The Prime Minister office has now confirmed that the President of India will be visiting New Zealand from 30 April to 1 May.
In an official press note released today from Prime Minister's office PM John Key welcomed the upcoming visit to New Zealand of the President of the Republic of India, Shri Pranab Mukherjee.
“New Zealand is looking forward to hosting the President on this historic visit, the first by an Indian President to New Zealand,” says Mr Key.
“It will be an opportunity to highlight our warm relationship, based on a shared Commonwealth heritage, commitment to democracy and the over 160,000 New Zealanders of Indian-origin, who make an important contribution to business, cultural and sporting life in New Zealand.”
President Mukherjee and his delegation arrive on Saturday 30 April for a series of events in Auckland, including an official welcome at Government House Auckland, a State dinner hosted by the Governor General, and talks with the Governor General and the Prime Minister.
While in Auckland, President Mukherjee will also address students at AUT Business School, and meet with Indian business and community leaders.
“India is an increasingly important trade and economic partner for New Zealand. Our total trade in goods and services with India topped $2 billion last year, and more than 23,000 Indian students studied in New Zealand last year alone.”
President Mukherjee leaves New Zealand on Monday 2 May.
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New Zealand will soon be playing host to the Honourable President of India, Shri Pranab Mukherjee. Although no official statement has been issued, we have learnt from reliable sources that this could be a reality in the very near future. This will be the first time that New Zealand will host a Head of the State visit from India.
Visits of Heads of States can be very exciting albeit very meticulously planned affairs. Presidential visits will normally be preceded by an advance party that looks into all the arrangements that often include senior officials looking into security, protocol and other details such as accommodation and local logistics. The visit itself could include a ceremonial welcome and introduction to the armed forces. There will normally be a State Banquet, and in our case, this is likely to be held at the Government House with full state honours. There may be some community engagements, engagements with the media and some press releases issued. These are, of course, speculations at this stage awaiting official confirmations. There seems to have been some activity that resembles the makings of a state visit and we await official confirmation on this from the High Commission of India.
In the meanwhile, we thought it may be quite timely to get to know the President of India a little more.
Born on December 11, 1935, in West Bengal, India, Pranab Kumar Mukherjee is the 13th and the current president of India. He assumed office on July 25, 2012. Previously he was the Finance Minister of India and a leader of the ongoing 15th LokSabha. Pranab Mukherjee is also a senior member of the Cabinet Committees on Economic Affairs, Parliamentary Affairs, Infrastructure, Political Affairs, Security, Prices, World Trade Organization, Unique Identification Authority of India and the Congress Working Committee.
Pranab Mukherjee is the son of Kamada Kinkar Mukherjee, a freedom fighter, a member of AICC and West Bengal Legislative Council, from 1952 to 1964. He studied politics, history and law at Calcutta University and worked as a teacher, a journalist and a lawyer before joining politics in 1969. Apart from work, Mr Mukherjee likes to read, listen to music and enjoys gardening. He is married to Suvra Mukherjee (1957–August 18, 2015) and has two sons and a daughter, Abhijit, Indrajit and Sharmistha.
His elder son, Abhijit Mukherjee, is a Congress MP from Jangipur, West Bengal. He was elected in the by-polls held after his father vacated the seat. Before his election, Abhijit was an MLA from Nalhati in Birbhum.
His daughter Sharmistha is a Kathak dancer and politician of the Indian National Congress.
In 1969, Pranab Mukherjee started his parliamentary career as a member of Rajya Sabha from the Congress party. He was re-elected in the following years: 1975, 1981, 1993 and 1999. From a series of cabinet posts, he rose to become the Finance Minister of India from 1982 to 1984. His tenure was well known for India not withdrawing the last billion instalment of an IMF loan. For a brief period he was pushed out of the Congress party, and during this phase, he shaped his political party called Rashtriya Samajwadi Congress. However, later on, he merged it back with Congress party in 1989.
His political career was revived when he was appointed as deputy chairman of the planning commission and subsequently as a union cabinet minister. For the first time from 1995 to 1996 in Rao's cabinet, he served as External Affairs Minister and was voted Outstanding Parliamentarian in 1997. Since 1985, he was the President of the West Bengal state unit of Congress, but later in July 2010 he resigned due to work-load.
Pranab Mukherjee won the LokSabha elections for the first time from Jangipur and was made the Leader of the House in the LokSabha. He heads the Congress Parliamentary Party and the Congress Legislative Party which constitutes of all the Congress MPs and MLAs in the country and also has the merit of being a Minister with various high profile Ministries.
He played an important role in directing the Cabinet pre-LokSabha elections when the Prime Minister underwent by-pass surgery by taking further charge as chairman of the Cabinet Committee of Political Affairs and Union Minister in Finance Ministry despite already being the Union Minister of External Affairs.
Mr Mukherjee is a member of the Board of Governors of the International Monetary Fund of the World Bank, the Asian Development Bank and the African Development Bank. On 10 October 2008, Pranab Mukherjee and U.S. Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice signed the Section 123 Agreement.
Within party social circles Mr Mukherjee is a well-respected individual, he has a status of a politician with an extraordinary memory and a distinct survival instinct. When Sonia Gandhi unwillingly agreed to join politics, he was one of her important counsellors, helping her through difficult circumstances. His loyalty and proficiency helped him achieve the position of Minister of Defense in 2004.
Pranab Mukherjee was nominated as an eligible presidential candidate for the President of India from UPA on June 15, 2012. Around 81 other candidates had filed nominations but the Election Commission rejected them all except P.A. Sangma and Pranab Mukherjee. The elections took place in July 2012 after the five states scheduled elections and the results were announced on 23rd July 2012. The veteran Pranab Mukherjee became the President of India after four decades of political life and is the first Bengali to assume the post. He won the presidential poll by a huge margin and was officially sworn in by the Chief Justice of India on 25th July 2012.
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In 1984, he was rated as the best Finance Minister in the World according to a survey by Euromoney magazine
Awarded Finance Minister of the Year for Asia by Emerging Markets, the daily newspaper of record for the World Bank and the International Monetary Fund IMF in 2010
The Banker recognised him as the Finance Minister of the Year in December 2010
Honoured with the Padma Vibhushan, the second highest civilian award of India, in 2008
Honorary Doctor of Letters degree from the University of Wolverhampton in 2011
Honorary D.Litt by the Assam University and Visvesvaraya Technological University in March 2012
Honorary Doctorate of Law by the President of Bangladesh and DU Chancellor Mohammad ZillurRahman at the University of Dhaka on March 4, 2013
Awarded Bangladesh's second highest award Bangladesh Liberation War Honour (Bangladesh Mukti juddho Sanmanona) on March 5, 2013
Awarded Doctor of Civil Law (honoris causa) by the University of Mauritius on March 13, 2013
Honorary Doctorate by the Istanbul University on October 5, 2013
Honorary Doctorate from the University of Calcutta in 2014
Honorary Doctorate in political science by the University of Jordan on 11 October 2015
Honorary Doctorate by the Al-Quds University of Ramallah, Palestine on October 13, 2015
Honorary Doctorate by the Hebrew University of Jerusalem, Israel on October 15, 2015
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Union Minister of Industrial Development 1973–1974
Union Minister of Shipping and Transport 1974
Minister of State for Finance 1974–1975
Union Minister of Revenue and Banking 1975–1977
Treasurer of the Congress Party 1978–79
Treasurer of the All India Congress Committee 1978–79
Leader of the House of the RajyaSabha 1980–85
Union Minister of Commerce and Steel and Mines 1980–1982
Union Minister of Finance 1982–1984
Board of Governors of the International Monetary Fund 1982–1985
Board of Governors of the World Bank 1982–1985
Board of Governors of the Asian Development Bank 1982–1984
Board of Governors of the African Development Bank 1982–1985
Union Minister of Commerce and Supply 1984
Chairman of the Campaign Committee of Congress for conducting national elections to Parliament 1984, 1991, 1996 and 1998
Chairman of the Group of 24 (a ministerial group attached to IMF and World Bank) 1984 and 2009–2012
President of the State Unit of Congress Party in West Bengal 1985 and 2000–10
Chairman of the Economic Advisory Cell of the AICC 1987–1989
Deputy Chairman of the Planning Commission 1991–1996
Union Minister of Commerce 1993–1995
Union Minister of External Affairs 1995–1996
President, SAARC Council of Ministers' Conference 1995
General Secretary of the All India Congress Committee 1998–1999
Chairman of the Central Election Coordination Committee 1999–2012
Leader of the House of the LokSabha 2004–2012
Union Minister of Defence 2004–2006
Union Minister of External Affairs 2006–2009
Union Minister of Finance 2009–2012
President of India since 25 July 2012
(Sources and ref: mapsofindia.com and wikipedia.org)