The state Urban Development Department has directed all the stakeholders of the state to get involved in the preparations for the G-20 conference.

Addressing a press conference here on Thursday, Urban Development Minister AK Sharma said that hosting the summit is a golden opportunity for the state to present its best image to the foreign delegates.

According to him, a total of 11 meetings related to the G-20 conference will be organized in UP while events will be held in four cities of the state, including Varanasi, Lucknow, Agra and Greater Noida. The events are designed to boost economic development of the state and make India’s role more important under G-20.

The minister said: “It has been our tradition to welcome guests. This time we are going to welcome guests from all over the world by keeping our cities clean and beautiful. All decorative and beautification works will be permanent construction.”

He said the first meeting of the G-20 conference will be held in Agra on February 11-12. This will be followed by meetings in Lucknow from February 13. The facilities and arrangements are being enhanced at all the four venues of the G-20 conference while instructions have been issued to beautify all 75 districts in the state.

According to the minister, the government has also started the UP G-city campaign, an initiative to find out “how to develop our cities into global cities”.

Amrit Abhijat, Principal Secretary, Urban Development Department, said that this time the G-20 conference in India is being positioned as the ‘mother of democracy’. The state government sees this conference as a great opportunity as well.

“All the work done in the state regarding digital empowerment should be displayed in front of the guests, including digital transfers of funds under Kisan Pension Yojana, Mine Mitra, cultural tourism (Kumbh, Ram Mandir), and Covid Control Center”, he said.

He said that the G-20 is a group of 20 largest economies of the world and the event is a great opportunity to showcase the cultural diversity, heritage, tourist places, etc. of Uttar Pradesh in front of the world as the state aspires to achieve $1 trillion economy goal.

Along with this, a walkathon-marathon will be organized in each district on January 21. CM Yogi Adityanath will flag off the walkathon in Lucknow. Various ODOP items will also be displayed before the foreign delegates during the event.

“The rich historical and cultural legacy of Uttar Pradesh should be compiled and presented on the G20 platform. The prosperous economy, GDP, industrial development, and investments in various sectors should also be displayed. Each park and road in these cities has been instructed to be named after the G-20”, officials said.

Apart from that, women-focused programmes will be held in Agra. The winning projects will also be prominently displayed during the G-20 summits.

He stated that various cultural programmes will be held during the G-20 meeting. “Our goal will be to make our foreign visitors feel more and more connected to our culture. A special emphasis will be placed on cultural programmes as well as food and clothing. Foreign visitors will be greeted with Bengali silk Angavastram at the airport.