India celebrates the 51st anniversary of its independence today. This day marks the culmination of the year-long celebrations of the Golden Jubilee of India's independence. Equally, this year has been one of festivity for Hong Kong in its new incarnation as the Special Administrative Region of the People's Republic of China.
India and Hong Kong have shared this joy through a host of activities organised by the Consulate General of India in Hong Kong, which provided the people of the SAR with a glimpse of India's contemporary achievements as well as our rich and diverse cultural heritage.
In this, we received support, co- operation and sponsorship in full measure both from the Indian community and Hong Kong institutions.
The events we organised included an exhibition on contemporary Indian art, a retrospective of Indian films, a Festival of Indian cuisine, and presentations of Indian music and dance (both classical and contemporary) by leading exponents, including performances during the Hong Kong Arts Festival.
The response and interest evinced by the people of Hong Kong has been a testimony to the strong bonds of friendship between India and Hong Kong, bonds that date back more than a century and a half.
The last year has, in many ways, seen a further consolidation of this friendship through increased interaction between India and Hong Kong. In 1997, tourist inflows into Hong Kong from India increased by 15 per cent over the previous year.