Washington DC [US], October 24 : India's Ambassador Vinay Mohan Kwatra on Friday joined the diaspora at the World Bank and International Monetary Fund (IMF) to celebrate Diwali.
"Celebrated Diwali with friends of India at the World Bank. It is always a delight to join in celebrations with the strong community of Indian and Indian-origin diaspora who work at the World Bank and IMF," Ambassador Kwatra said.
The Ambassador's participation underscored India's commitment to promoting its cultural heritage abroad while engaging with the international community in meaningful dialogue.
Earlier on Wednesday, Kwatra also joined US President Donald Trump at the White House for Diwali celebrations.
Following the celebration, the Indian Ambassador stated that he was "deeply honoured" to join President Trump and extended warm greetings on behalf of Prime Minister Narendra Modi to the Indian-American community.
"Deeply honoured to join President Donald J. Trump at the White House today to celebrate Diwali. Wished him on behalf of Prime Minister Narendra Modi a Happy Diwali and thanked him for this beautiful gesture. Warm Diwali greetings to all celebrating, especially the vibrant 5-million-strong Indian diaspora in the U.S.," the Ambassador wrote in another post on X.
Trump, during the celebration, extended his warm greetings to the people of India and Indian-Americans.
During initial remarks, the US President praised Prime Minister Narendra Modi, calling him a "great person" and a "great friend", while highlighting US-India ties in trade and regional peace.
"Let me extend our warmest wishes to the people of India. I just spoke to your Prime Minister today. Had a great conversation. We talked about trade... He's very interested in that. Although we did talk a little while ago about let's have no wars with Pakistan. The fact that trade was involved, I was able to talk about that. And we have no war with Pakistan and India. That was a very, very good thing," Trump said at the event.
"He's (PM Modi) a great person, and he's become a great friend of mine over the years," the US President added.
Following his initial remarks, Trump lit up the diyas to celebrate the festival at the White House.
Several senior officials from the Trump Administration were present during the event, including FBI Director Kash Patel, ODNI Director Tulsi Gabbard, White House Deputy Press Secretary Kush Desai, Ambassador of India to the US Vinay Mohan Kwatra and Ambassador of the US to India Sergio Gor.
Diwali is a five-day festival that starts on Dhanteras. On Dhanteras, people purchase jewellery or utensils and worship the gods.
The second day is called Naraka Chaturdashi. It is also called 'Chhoti Diwali'.
The third day of Diwali is the main day of the celebrations. People worship Lord Ganesha and Goddess Lakshmi on this day, offering prayers to bless them with wealth and prosperity.
The fourth day of Diwali is devoted to Govardhan Puja. The fifth day is called Bhai Dooj.