New Delhi: The IAFA (Indo-American Friendship Association, New Delhi) hosted its dinner reception—which was postponed a couple of times on account of Omicron, state elections and the evacuation of Indians from Ukraine—to felicitate Hardeeep Singh Puri, Minister of PNG, Housing & Urban Affairs and his wife Lakshmi Puri, at the party Cottage of Delhi Gymkhana Club on 11 April. It was attended, among others, by the Sufi singer and BJP MP, Hansraj Hans, Sarod Maestro, Ustad Amjad Ali Khan, Padma Vibhushan the senior most living diplomat of India, Amb. Maharajakrishna Rasgotra, Alex Ellis, British High Commissioner, Brazilian Ambassador, Andre do Lago, Ambassador of Bhutan, Major General V. Namgyel, the Chief Information Commissioner, Amb.Y.K. Sinha, Secretary (West) MEA, Sanjay Verma, former Foreign Secretary Amb. Lalit Mansingh, former Chief of the Army Staff, General Deepak Kapoor, former High Commissioner to Pakistan, G.Parthasarathy, former Ambassador to USA Navtej Sarna, former Ambassador to Belgium & Nepal Manjev Puri, former Ambassador to Germany, Gurjit Singh, former Secretary MEA, Anil Wadhwa, former Ambassador to Japan, Deepa Wadhwa, Odissi danseuse Sharon Leon, academics and columnists: Prof Raja Mohan, Prof Amitabh Mattoo, Prof Kondapalli, Dir General of IDSA, Amb. Sujan Chinoy, Dir General, ICCR, Kumar Tuhin, veteran journalist Kalyani Shankar, anchor of News X’s Round Table Priya Sahgal, Editor of The Sunday Guardian, Joyeeta Basu, senior International journalist Dr Waiel Awwad, Chairperson, SPIC MACY Foundation, Rashmi Malik, Director of India Habitat Centre, Sunit Tandon, & MD of the French Bakery Kazem Samandari.
While complimenting, hailing and toasting “Hardeep”, as he is affectionately known among friends, on his elevation to the rank of Cabinet Minister of PNG, Housing & Urban Affairs, speakers underlined his born brilliance, hard work and dedication, meticulous and painstaking preparations, keeping himself well informed and ahead of the curve, enviable ability to articulate coherently, cogently and convincingly, courage to call a spade a spade if national interests so warranted and fearlessness to accept challenging and risky assignments and inexhaustible resourcefulness. Amb. Surendra Kumar referred to his reputation as a go-getter, “if you want to get something done, give it to him and he will deliver with his innate trait to observe professional norms”. Kumar stressed that while for career diplomats who have spent 35-40 years in the IFS, handling foreign affairs was relatively easy, handling the unchartered territories like smart cities, building millions of houses and toilets, supervising the creation of the Central Vista, addressing the complex issues of urbanization and ensuring India’s energy security that Hardeep was doing was much more difficult and demanding. The fact that he was closely involved with the evacuation of Indians from Ukraine recently speaks about his multitasking.
Amb. Lalit Mansingh drew attention to Hardeep’s courage displayed so early in his career (he was the First Secretary at the Indian High Commission in Colomboin1987 ) when he met the LTTE supermo V.Prabhakaran in thick Sri Lankan jungles several times to persuade him to come to Delhi. Obviously, Hardeep has overshot his Mentor Mani Dixit’s prediction that he was a Foreign Secretary material!
Mrs Lakshmi Puri, a career diplomat herself, also came in for a lot of praise for serving in the IFS with distinction and then spending15 years in the UN, rising to the rank of the Asstt Secretary General & Deputy Executive Director of the UN Women.
Minister Puri expressed his happiness to be among so many friends from the IFS fraternity which forms his extended family. Earlier Amb.Kumar had stressed that Hardeep’s achievements were not a matter of pride to him and his family alone but to the entire IFS. PNG Minister released the book “India’s Foreign Policy in the post Covid-19 world through the eyes of Indian diplomats” edited by Surendra Kumar with contributions of 30 former ambassadors in the presence of a dozen contributors. According to Puri, the book includes several substantive essays about India’s foreign policy. The proceedings of the evening began with a minute’s silence in memory of Pt Birju Maharaj ji who was a great supporter of IAFA having participated in around 15 of its events in the last 12 years.