US city in Mississippi Delta region to install Mahatma Gandhi's bronze bust

Washington, October 8

A US city in the heart of the Mississippi Delta region, whose economic fortunes have been recently revived largely by a company founded by an Indian-American, will install a bronze bust of Mahatma Gandhi.

The unveiling of the bust, which has been commissioned and supplied by the Indian Council for Cultural Relations and designed by famous sculptor Ram Sutar, would be carried out during a ceremony in the city of Clarksdale, Mississippi, and Coahoma County on Friday.

“We are humbled by this most generous gift. Gandhi was among the most courageous and spiritual of men. He led his nation to freedom not with guns but with simplicity, determination, truth and non-violence. His efforts inspired the world, including the leaders of our own nation's Civil Rights Movement, such as Dr King (Martin Luther King Jr) and the late Congressman John Lewis,” said Clarksdale Mayor Chuck Espy.

India's Consul General in Atlanta Swati Kulkarni would formally present the bust to the city, a media statement said.

The ceremony takes place in the week of Gandhi's birthday and during the celebratory 75th anniversary year of India's Independence.

Clarksdale and Coahoma County are located in the heart of the Mississippi Delta region, near the Mississippi River. PTI