Following the demise of the former President and Prime Minister of the Republic of Mauritius, Sir Anerood Jugnauth (SAJ), GCSK, KCMG, QC, on 03 June 2021, the Indian Council for International Co-operation – Antar Rashtriya Sahayog Parishad (ARSP) fraternity, in collaboration with Human Service Trust of Mauritius held, this afternoon, a virtual condolence meeting (Shradhanjali Sabha) to pay him tribute.
Present for the virtual ceremony, in Port-Louis, the Minister of Land Transport and Light Rail, Minister of Foreign Affairs, Regional Integration and International Trade, Mr Alan Ganoo, recalled that Sir Anerood Jugnauth was a towering leader and statesman who has shaped the political, social and economic landscape of modern Mauritius. I have had the privilege of knowing him, sharing his experience and inspiring myself from his work ethics, and admiring his commitment to his fellow citizens for more than 40 years’, he added.
As regards SAJ’s relationship with the Republic of India, the Minister recalled that he always had confidence in India as the special friend of Mauritius and his years in office saw increasing cooperation with substantial Indian assistance to many sectors including infrastructure, medicine, transportation, national security as well as through the setting up of a bilateral agreement in the educational field with India.
Furthermore, the Foreign Minister underlined those relations between Sir Anerood Jugnauth and Indian leaders have always been unique and outstanding. SAJ, he stated, has left an extraordinary legacy behind through his passion for making our country a better place to live in, and, through these bilateral relationships, several sectors such as the Information Technology sector has flourished. Sir Anerood Jugnauth’s vision allowed Mauritius to keep the pace of modernisation by setting up the Cyber City in Ebène thus embarking the Innovative Information and Communication Technology sector as a new pillar of the economy, the Minister underscored.
As for the President of the ARSP, Mr Virendra Gupta, he recalled that Sir Anerood Jugnauth served at the highest constitutional positions of President and Prime Minister of Mauritius and was a true friend of India. SAJ guided Indo-Mauritian bilateral relations to a truly strategic partnership rooted in extraordinary mutual trust and convergence of a rule-based world view making him a real star amongst the senior global leaders of Indian origin, he added.
Furthermore, he pointed out that SAJ was awarded the Pravasi Bharatiya Samman in recognition of his faith in the time tested Indian cultural and societal values and their practices. He was also amongst the very few foreign leaders to have been conferred upon the highest civilian award Padma Vibhushan, they stated.
As regards his bond with the ARSP, Mr Gupta indicated that Sir Anerood Jugnauth’s association with the fraternity was almost as old as the history of the organisation and he had personally inaugurated the current headquarters of the association in New Delhi. The large membership of ARSP has lost a dear friend, a valued mentor and a wise counsel, he concluded.
