Indian Ambassador Vishnu Prakash and Busan Mayor Suh Byeong-soo participated in the unveiling ceremony of a statue of Mahatma Gandhi at a Buddhist temple in Busan on Monday.

Prakash, along with Hannarae Foundation of Culture chairman Ven. Shim San and other city and national government officials, participated in the unveiling of a bust created in honor of India’s iconic leader at Hongbeopsa Temple in South Korea’s second-largest city.

The bronze bust of Mahatma Gandhi, crafted by Indian sculptor Gautam Pal, was presented by the Indian Council of Cultural Relations.

Prakash said he was pleased by the “briskly expanding people-to-people ties between India and Busan.”

The unveiling ceremony was followed by a Manipuri dance recital sponsored by the ICCR to mark the formal inauguration of the Indian Cultural Center in Busan, which is located next to Hongbeopsa Temple.

The new Indian cultural center was established and funded through the initiative of Ven. Shim San and Indian Cultural Center director Jeong Deok-min.

Prakash and Satish C. Mehta, director general of the ICCR, visited Gimhae on Wednesday to pay their respects at memorials erected there in the name of King Kim Su-ro of the ancient kingdom of Geumgwan Gaya.

According to historical texts, the Gaya monarch married Queen Heo Hwang-ok, a princess from Ayodhya in India who had traveled to Korea in A.D. 48. Millions of Koreans trace their ancestry back to this monarch.

(ephilip2014@heraldcorp.com)