(Image source from: The Hindu)
The Indian community in Houston is all geared up for the mega diaspora event ‘Howdy Modi!, in which Narendra Modi will address more than 50,000 people at the historic NGR Stadium on September 22.
Besides influential United States lawmakers, the event will also be attended by President Donald Trump. According to organizers, the event will provide the world a glimpse of the valuable contributions of Indian Americans to the cultural, intellectual, and social landscape of the United States.
Several organizations, scores of volunteers, the Indian Consulate in Houston, the governor’s office and Texas India Forum are working together around-the-clock to the event a grand success.
According to a statement by Texas India Forum, the event will kick off with a 90-minute cultural program - ‘Woven: The Indian-American Story’ featuring about 27 performance groups, 400 performers, and community members from Texas and across the United States. Two original songs have been written for the event, which will mark the journey of the Indian American youth.
Subsequently, there will be the ‘Shared Dreams, Bright Future’ session focusing on the triumph of Indian Americans and the strength of the United States-India relationship. President Trump is likely to make a speech at the event followed by PM Modi's speech.
Read: What Trump Attains by Attending ‘Howdy Modi!’ Event
The 'Howdy, Modi!' event will be 3 hours long - 10:00 a.m. to 1:00 a.m. The organizers said the event attendees and those watching PM Modi’s address from home will experience the vibrant expressions of people empowered by their identity and driven to augment the communities around them.
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NGR Stadium in Houston, where the event is about to take place, is one of the United States’ largest professional football stadiums and is the abode to the Houston Texans franchise.
Rishi Bhutada, public relations and media coordinator for the event, said out of over 50,000 people expected to attend the event, about 8,000 are coming from outside Texas state. There will be a cultural program, followed by Prime Minister Modi’s address.
Houston city is occupied with welcome messages, personalized billboards, special videos from various organizations and prominent people about the event.
Facebook CEO Mark Zuckerberg in his message says:
I'm deeply appreciative of Prime Minister Modi's commitment to Digital India...for India to keep making progress, India needs to be a leader online.
Microsoft CEO Satya Nadella says:
India has world-class entrepreneurs and human capital. The Prime Minister's vision is spot on; he knows how tech is a powerful tool to enable human ingenuity.
Durga Agrawal, President and Chief Executive Officer of Piping Tech and Products, extended a warm welcome to Prime Minister Modi representing entire Indian American community in Houston.
Bhavesh Patel, the Chief Executive Officer of LyondellBasell, sharing an enthusiastic welcome message to PM Modi, also described the business relations between India and Texas.
Paul Jacobs, former executive chairman, Qualcomm, said:
We share Prime Minister Narendra Modi's vision to transform India into a digitally empowered society and knowledge economy.
David Leebron, President of Rice University, said he is pleased that PM Modi has decided to come to Houston. He proudly highlighted the contribution of the Indian American community on campus towards diversity.
As per local weather department, there is a possibility of heavy rain in parts of Texas and Louisiana in the coming days due to tropical storm brewing in the Gulf of Mexico and the Atlantic Ocean.
Jeff Lindner, a meteorologist for the Harris County Flood Control District said threats from the tropical storm include heavy rain and possible flooding in the Houston area.
By Sowmya Sangam
