Mauritius president visits Golden Temple, Attari border

Mauritius President Rajkeswur Purryag on Sunday offered prayers at the holiest of Sikh shrines 'Harmandar Sahib', popularly known as Golden Temple, here as he reached Punjab on a three-day visit.

The Mauritius president later went to the Attari-Wagah joint border check-post between India and Pakistan to witness the evening retreat ceremony.

Purryag, accompanied by his wife and other officials, was received at the Sikh shrine by senior functionaries of the Shiromani Gurdwara Parbandhak Committee (SGPC).

He went around the "Parikrama" of the shrine and offered prayers at the sanctum sanctorum. He listened to hymns at the shrine for some time.

Purryag, whose forefathers hailed from Bihar, told the media outside the shrine that he felt very peaceful after visiting the shrine about which he had heard a lot.

He said India and Mauritius had always shared close relations and both the countries will strive to make them stronger.

President Purryag will attend the fourth convocation of the Lovely Professional University (LPU) at Jalandhar, nearly 100 km from here, on Monday and on Tuesday.

LPU chancellor Ashok Mittal said the university will also bestow 'honoris causa' doctorate degree on Purryag.

Mittal said LPU had the honour of hosting two presidents - President Pranab Mukherjee and (then) Afghanistan President Hamid Karzai - at its convocation in 2013.

LPU, which has one of the largest campuses among private universities in India, has over 30,000 students on its rolls.