EAM Jaishankar extends gratitude to Yogi Adityanath for excellent arrangements in Varanasi for G20 meeting

New Delhi [India], June 13 : External Affairs Minister (EAM) S Jaishankar on Tuesday extended his gratitude to Uttar Pradesh Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath for excellent arrangements in Varanasi for the G20 Development Ministers meeting organised from June 11-13.

"We depart from Varanasi today after a successful G20 Development Ministerial. Gratitude to the Chief Minister @myogiadityanath ji and the Government of Uttar Pradesh for the excellent arrangements. All the delegates are going back with wonderful memories of Ganga Aarti and Sarnath Darshan," the EAM tweeted on Tuesday.

"Yesterday the G-20 has made a consensus on lifestyles for sustainable development, which is actually the inspiration of Mother Ganga, the giver of life," he further wrote.

After the successful culmination of the ongoing G20 Development Ministers meeting in Varanasi, the G20 delegates accompanied by EAM Jaishankar visited the historic Sarnath on Tuesday.

The foreign delegates saw the ancient monuments, Dhamek Stupa, and museum among others during their visit.

The External Affairs Minister was seen giving information to the delegates about the historical place of Sarnath. The Uttar Pradesh government designated 115 guides who were accompanying foreign delegates to offer all the information.

During the Sarnath tour, the foreign delegates performed 'parikrama' of the 43.6-meter high and 28-meter wide Dhamek Stupa. A cultural program was also organized and after that, all the guests left for Delhi, as per an official release.

Earlier the G20 Development Ministers' Conference in Varanasi adopted an ambitious seven-year action plan presented by India to accelerate progress on the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) by the G20 countries.

In the meeting, another document was accepted with the aim of increasing cooperation and partnership regarding sustainable lifestyles for meeting climate change goals.

The outcome of the document adopted by the development ministers will be presented for consideration by G20 leaders at the G20 Leaders' Summit to be held in New Delhi on September 9 and 10 in 2023.

During his address, Foreign Minister S. Jaishankar said, "The action plan on the SDGs will not only inspire a stronger G20 commitment to the development agenda but also drive transformative actions in three key areas."

He further revealed that discussions were held among the G-20 countries regarding lifestyle in relation to environmental conservation and India's lifestyle was presented as a model in this context.

In the meeting, Jaishankar also said that India has become the voice of the Global South and has tried to raise the issues of financial gap and debt challenges in achieving the Sustainable Development Goals.