Vietnam President To Lam, on his first official visit to India, met Prime Minister Narendra Modi in New Delhi to discuss bilateral relations.
During the meeting, PM Modi presented a set of cultural and heritage gifts reflecting India’s traditions and craft skills.
One of the gifts was “Namo 108”, a specially developed lotus created by the National Botanical Research Institute in Lucknow, Uttar Pradesh. The lotus is noted for having exactly 108 petals, a number regarded as sacred in Hinduism, Buddhism and Jainism.
PM Modi also gifted a bronze Buddha statue crafted by artisans from Moradabad, Uttar Pradesh, depicting the Buddha in meditation under the Bodhi tree, with the right hand in Abhaya mudra and the left holding a small bowl.
Another gift was premium Banarasi silk woven in Varanasi, Uttar Pradesh, designed to suit Vietnam’s traditional “Ao Dai” attire, symbolically blending the cultural aesthetics of both countries.
