New Delhi, Jan 26 (IANS) US President Barack Obama accompanied by his wife Michelle were the star guests at President Pranab Mukherjee's traditional At Home reception on the manicured lawns of Rashtrapati Bhavan here Monday, an event that was briefer than usual and saw a much-trimmed guest list than before.
Amid stricter than usual security, with security personnel firmly keeping invited guests from pushing at the ribbon-barricade dividing them from the VVIPs, the US president and his wife mingled with the members of Prime Minister Narendra Modi's government and also with former prime minister Manmohan Singh and Congress president Sonia Gandhi.
Obama and Michelle, who attended the two-hour-long Republic Day celebrations earlier in the day, made it a point to shake hands and greet the members of the National Democratic Alliance government who turned up for the At Home.
They included External Affairs Minister Sushma Swaraj, Defence Minister Manohar Parrikar, Human Resource Development Minister Smriti Irani and Minister of State for Information and Broadcasting Rajyavardhan Singh Rathore among others.
While Obama was dressed in a formal dark suit, Michelle was wearing an off-white smart dress with small floral prints.
Modi was attired in a cream-coloured churidar-kurta, matched with a dark orange sleeveless jacket and a cream coloured shawl thrown across his shoulders.
The At Home this year lasted around 35-40 minutes, shorter than the one-hour event it usually is.
The reason: both Modi and Obama had to rush to the Taj Palace Hotel to attend two back-to-back business events with top CEOs from both India and the US in attendance held in the evening.
Both Modi and Obama were to address the India-US CEOs Forum and an Indo-US Business Summit.
There were around 1,400 guests this time, according to the president's press secretary Venu Rajamony. Previous At Home events have seen 2,000-plus guests in attendance.
After meeting the ministers, Obama took a turn towards the invited gathering comprising envoys, diplomats, top government officials and cultural aficionados.
It looked for a moment as though he was about to go forward and meet the eagerly waiting guests, but the US president waved back and went back to his seat, as did his wife Michelle.
Congress president Sonia Gandhi, dressed smartly in a black sari with a red border with a black coat to match, stood out with her quiet elegance.
Former prime minister Manmohan Singh and his wife Gursharan Kaur were also there.
Both Sonia Gandhi and Manmohan Singh had met Obama before the At Home.
The event was telecast live for the first time.
Prime Minister Narendra Modi addressed the Indian community in Trinidad and Tobago on Thursday. D
'The woman who really Modernised China'
Jaipur, Jan 21 (IANS) China's Dowager Empress Cixi has been long reviled as a despotic ruler wh
Samsung reduced the price of this 7000mAh battery smartphone, know what is the new price
The price cut of the smartphone continues on the occasion of the new year. Many companies are cut
The country's economy is constantly improving. This is the reason that the Goods and Services Tax
New Delhi, March 2 (IANS) AAP leader Yogendra Yadav on Mo
Not music to the ears; Goa DJs face drug probe
Panaji, March 11 (IANS) The arrest of yet another DJ for possessing and peddling drugs in Goa h
MI vs DC: Mumbai dashed Delhi's hopes, reached the playoffs; After Suryakumar, Santner-Bumrah shone
Mumbai Indians defeated Delhi Capitals by 59 runs. With this, Mumbai became the fourth team to re
The New Year 2026 was welcomed across the country with devotion, joy, faith, and cheers. People e
Madhya Pradesh High Court has stayed the 27% OBC reservation in the recruitment of teachers in th
Four injured in Delhi Building Collapse
New Delhi, Jan 29 (IANS) Four labourers were injured when an under construction building collaps
