International
Indian Vice President Dhankhar and EAM Jaishankar visited Cambodia’s Angkor Wat, Emphasised on Boosting Tourism Between India and Cambodia
India’s Vice President Jagdeep Dhankhar and External Affairs Minister Dr. S. Jaishankar arrived in Cambodia to attend the 19th India-ASEAN Summit as well as the 40th and 41st ASEAN Summit. Alongside this, the two Indian leaders also visited the iconic Angkor Wat temple and offered prayers at the ‘Ta Prohm’ temple. During this visit, EAM Jaishankar stressed on promoting tourism between India and Cambodia.
Angkor Wat, situated in Siem Reap is considered to be the largest Hindu temple in the world. This grand temple is dedicated to Lord Vishnu, which was built by King Suryavarma II of Kambuj in the 12th century. A surprising fact about the Angkor Wat is the existence of a deep moat around this temple, whose length is two and a half miles and width is 650 feet.
The grandeur of this temple can be easily seen by the people of India, thus, special attention is being paid to connectivity. India and Cambodia have decided to start direct air connectivity between the two countries. Its objective is to promote tourism in both the countries. This sentiment was also shared by Cambodian Information Minister Khieu Kanharith who addressed India-ASEAN media personnel on the sidelines of the ASEAN Summit, highlighting the need for direct flights from Cambodia to New Delhi and Bodhgaya.
This is the first official foreign visit of Vice President Jagdeep Dhankhar to mark the 70th anniversary of India-Cambodia bilateral relations, said India’s Ambassador to Cambodia Devyani Khobragade. Several agreements have been signed between the two countries on institutional and cultural linkages. He also highlighted that India has been engaged in the conservation and restoration work of temples in Cambodia for a long time now.
