Rashtrapati Bhavan getting ready for Narendra Modi’s swearing-in ceremony

NEW DELHI: Massive and unprecedented arrangements are being made for the swearing in of Narendra Modi as the 15th PM of India on the evening of May 26 at the forecourt of the Rashtrapati Bhavan. Around 4,000 guests are expected to attend the ceremony. The last two occasions when swearing in of a PM was organised at the forecourt of the Rashtrapati Bhavan was in 1990 when Chandrashekar was sworn in, and later in 1996 and 1998, when AB Vajpayee took oath as the PM. But even then, the guest list was not that long.

The ceremony, which is going to start at 6 pm, is expected to last an hour. “Foreign Secretary Mrs Sujatha Singh has sent invites to her counterparts from seven other Saarc members states. In this communication, she has conveyed to them, on behalf of PM-designate Narendra Modi an invitation to their leaders to the swearing-in ceremony on the 26th of this month. These communications have just gone off and we are now awaiting a response,” MEA spokesperson Syed Akbarrudin said.

However, none of the foreign leaders will be staying at the guest wingof the Rashtrapati Bhavan that was renovated last year. An officer told ET that foolproof arrangements are being made to ensure complete security of the guests. Omita Paul, Secretary to the President, is personally overseeing the arrangements in coordination with the MEA, MHA and BJP leaders, sources said. President Pranab Mukherjee has been kept in the loop on all arrangements and updated regularly.