William, Kate to tour India next year

Prince William and his wife Kate Middleton will undertake their first visit to India in the first half of next year, Kensington Palace announced on Friday coinciding with Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s maiden UK trip.

The announcement came soon after Prime Minister Modi was hosted for lunch by Queen Elizabeth II at Buckingham Palace.

“The Duke and Duchess of Cambridge will be visiting India in spring (February-June) next year. This is their first visit to the country and has been planned on the request of the British government,” a Kensington Palace spokesperson told PTI.

It is believed the couple, both aged 33, will visit the Taj Mahal among other tourist destinations in the country.

Whether the couple will be accompanied by their children — Prince George and Princess Charlotte — along with other details of the tour will be known by early next year.

The visit is set to be their first official overseas tour together since their three-day tour of New York in December 2014.

It will be the first time William and Kate have visited the region, and as such they will undertake a broad range of engagements during their time in India, reports said.

Although Prince William has never visited India before, his father Prince Charles has carried out eight official royal tours to the nation, the most recent being a nine-day tour of Dehradun, New Delhi, Mumbai, Pune and Kochi in November 2013.

William's mother Diana, Princess of Wales also visited India in 1992.

Meanwhile other British royals to tour the region include Sophie Wessex, Prince Andrew and Queen Elizabeth II, who last travelled to India in 1997.

The tour announcement came after the 89-year-old monarch met with Prime Minister Narendra Modi for lunch at Buckingham Palace.