Embassy of India
Seoul

On the fourth day of the visit, Hon’ble Speaker of Lok Sabha Smt. Sumitra Mahajan along with Indian Parliamentary delegation visited Gimhae and Busan as part of her five day Official visit to South Korea. President of the Garak Society Mr. Ki-jae Kim, Lawmaker from Minjoo Party Mr. Hong Cheol-min and Deputy Mayor of the Gimhae City Administration Ms. Seong-hye Youn jointly hosted lunch in honour of Hon’ble Speaker at Gimhae. Later in the day Hon’ble Speaker paid homage at the tombs of King Kim Suro and Queen Huh Hwang-ok.
According to “SamgukYusa” or “The Heritage History of the Three Kingdoms” written in the 13th century, Indian Princess Suriratna sailed from a distant kingdom of Ayodhya in India and married King Kim Suro, the King of Gaya in the year 48 AD and become known as Queen Huh Hwang-ok. The descendants of the royal family account to about 5 million of Korean population out of its total 50 million thereby creating a strong historical bond between the two countries.
Hon’ble Speaker also visited the Indian Culture Centre at Busan (ICCBS) later in the day. Established in 2013 on the 40th anniversary of India-Korea diplomatic relations, ICCBS is a unique model functioning on the basis of Public Private Partnership. Executive Director of ICCBS and Honorary Consul General of India in Busan Mr. Jeong Deok-min received Hon’ble Speaker at the Cultural centre and briefed about the functioning of ICCBS. Speaker interacted with Korean students and children learning yoga, dance and Hindi at the Centre. Hon’ble Speaker commended Mr. Jeong for his outstanding contribution in promotion of bilateral relations between India and Korea and, in particular for promoting Indian Culture in Korea.
The official visit of the Hon’ble Speaker and the Indian delegation concluded with a visit to the Hongbeopsa Temple at Busan on the occasion of Gandhi Jayanthi on 2nd October. The only statue of Mahatma Gandhi in South Korea is located in the temple. Head monk of the Hongbeopsa Temple Venerable Shim San welcomed Hon’ble Speaker and the Indian delegation. Commemorating the occasion, ICCBS organized singing of the national anthem of India and Korea by Korean children followed by singing of Gandhiji’s famous bhajans by Shri Brijesh Sharma.

Busan
2 October 2016.