Sydney Harbour Bridge, Opera House Light Up With Indian Tricolour

Australia’s iconic Sydney Harbour Bridge and the Opera House here were illuminated with the Indian tricolour as Prime Minister Narendra Modi visited the historic landmarks on Wednesday with his Australian counterpart Anthony Albanese.

Local news agencies quoted the Australian PM saying that the sails were lit in a show of respect to PM Modi as he concluded his three-day visit to the country after almost a decade.

“There are 1.4 billion reasons why we want the Indian flag on the opera house because it is the largest population in the world. One of the things about lighting up the Opera House is it projects our image to the world,” Albanese was quoted as saying by news outlet 2GB.

The Sydney Harbour Bridge is famous for being the world’s largest steel arch bridge. On the other hand, the Opera House is Sydney’s best-known landmark which is used as a multipurpose performing arts facility. The building also houses restaurants and a professional recording studio. It was designated UNESCO World Heritage site in 2007.

The last time the sails of the Opera House were lit in the tricolour was to commemorate the 75th anniversary of Indian Independence in August, 2022. A huge controversy had erupted recently after the government of New South Wales header by Chris Minns blocked its illumination for the coronation of King Charles III.

Earlier on Wednesday, PM Modi accorded a Ceremonial Guard of Honour at the Admiralty House in Sydney. Later on, he held a bilateral meeting with PM Albanese to further deepen relationship between the two quad nations.

The meeting is built on the outcomes from the Australia-India Annual Leaders’ Summit in March this year.

-With inputs from PTI