Prime Minister Narendra Modi gifted Russian President Vladimir Putin a Russian translation of the Thirukkural during bilateral talks in New Delhi on Friday.
The meeting was held ahead of the 18th BRICS Summit, with Modi saying he was confident the gift would deepen people-to-people ties between India and Russia.
The Thirukkural is an ancient Tamil work of 1,330 couplets, attributed to poet-saint Thiruvalluvar and written nearly two thousand years ago.
Discussions between the two leaders covered trade, industry, energy, mobility and critical resources, including cooperation in the rail sector and steel value chain.
Putin arrived in Delhi ahead of the BRICS Summit, which India is hosting from September 12 to 13.
The two leaders have met on multiple occasions in recent years, both at bilateral summits and on the sidelines of multilateral forums such as BRICS and the SCO.
Officials from both sides were expected to hold follow-up working-level discussions in the weeks after the summit to translate the leaders’ talks into concrete agreements.
India has traditionally balanced its ties with Russia alongside its relationships with Western partners, a dynamic that continues to shape its foreign policy approach.
Putin arrived in New Delhi on Friday ahead of the 18th BRICS Summit, which India is hosting on September 12 and 13.
The Thirukkural, attributed to the Tamil poet-saint Thiruvalluvar, comprises 1,330 two-line couplets offering guidance on virtue, wealth and statecraft, written roughly two thousand years ago.
PM Modi said he was confident people-to-people contact between India and Russia would grow with the availability of the Thirukkural in Russian translation.
The bilateral discussions were expected to cover trade, industry, energy, mobility and critical resources, alongside deeper industrial cooperation.
Talks reportedly touched on plans related to INNOPROM participation in India, as well as collaboration in the rail sector and the steel value chain.
PM Narendra Modi with President Vladimir Putin, PIB/Wikimedia Commons, GODL-India
