Mandela statue to be erected in New Delhi

A statue of former South African president Nelson Mandela will be put up on the road in the Indian capital named after him, South Africa's acting High Commissioner Malose W. Mogale announced here Thursday.

Mogale made the announcement at an event here to mark Mandela's 95th birthday as also the Nelson Mandela International Day,

"I have just received some news that Nelson Mandela is recovering well and he will soon be released from hospital," Mogale updated the gathering on health condition of Mandela, who has gone through a critical phase in a Pretoria hospital.

Students from different schools sang and marched in procession with portraits of Mandela, Mahatma Gandhi and Martin Luther King at the Gandhi-King Memorial Plaza of the India International Centre, the venue of the event.

An exhibition on Mandela titled "Madiba: His Life and Struggle" has been organised as part of the Taking Children to Gandhi series that brings children closer to the enduring legacy of Gandhi's non-violent struggle for equity, justice, pluralism and sustainable development.

The theme of the event was "Take Action, Inspire Change, Make Every Day a Mandela Day".

A message from UN Secretary General Ban Ki-moon, read out on the occasion, said: "In marking this Day, the United Nations is joining the Mandela Foundation in asking people around the world to devote at least 67 minutes of their time on July 18 to community service."

Nelson Mandela's statue has been donated by Vikramjit Sahney, chairman, Sun Foundation, who said his group has also adopted the road here named after Mandela, for its beautification.