President arrives in Hyderabad for southern sojourn

Hyderabad: President Pranab Mukherjee arrived here on Friday evening for 14-day southern sojourn.

Telangana Governor E.S.L. Narasimhan, Chief Minister K. Chandrasekhar Rao, his cabinet colleagues and top officials accorded a warm welcome to the president at Hakimpet airport.

Mukherjee later drove straight to Rashtrapati Nilayam, the official retreat of the president at Bolarum in Secunderabad, where he will stay till December 31.

The president has an array of engagements lined up. On Saturday, he will attend the convocation of Military College of Electronics and Mechanical Engineering, Secunderabad.

On December 22 and 23, Mukherjee will visit Karnataka where he will attend the second convocation of Central University of Karnataka on December 22. On the same day, he will inaugurate the Magneto Encephalography Equipment and renovated heritage building of the National Institute of Mental Health and Neuro-Sciences (NIMHANS), Bengaluru.

The next day, the president will attend the 150th Anniversary of Bishop Cotton Boys’ School and lay the foundation stone of the State Cancer Institute at the Kidwai Memorial Institute of Oncology, Bengaluru.

On December 25, he will inaugurate the Tirumala Tirupati Devasthanam’s vedic school at Ai Bhimavaram in Andhra Pradesh.

He will attend Ayutha Chandi Maha Yagam being organised by Chandrasekhar Rao at his farm house near Hyderabad on December 27.

The five-day rituals for ‘Lok Kalyanam’ (universal prosperity) and ‘Vishwa Shanthi’ (universal peace) will be held from December 23.

The same day, the president will deliver the inaugural address at the Indian Economic Association’s Annual Conference at Professor Jayashankar Telangana State Agricultural University in Hyderabad.

Narasimhan will host a dinner in honour of the president on December 29, while the president will host a reception for senior dignitaries of the state, ministers, officials, and journalists at the Rashtrapati Nilayam on December 30.