PM Narendra Modi to inaugurate first PIO Parliamentary Conference in Delhi today

New Delhi: Prime Minister Narendra Modi will on Tuesday inaugurate the first Persons of Indian Origin (PIO) Parliamentary Conference in the 'Pravasi Bharatiya Kendra' at Chanakyapuri here.

As many as 124 Members of Parliament and 17 mayors from 23 countries will participate in this conference.

While 124 MPs from the UK, Canada, Fiji, Kenya, Mauritius, New Zealand, Sri Lanka and other countries are slated to take part in today's conference, 17 mayors from US, Malaysia, Switzerland, Guyana, Trinidad and Tobago will also participate in it.

No lawmaker from the US will be attending this year's PIO conference because of the ongoing session of the Senate. 

The event is scheduled to commence at 10 am with Minister of External Affairs Sushma Swaraj's speech and Prime Minister Modi will be the keynote speaker.

Every year, January 9 is celebrated as Pravasi Bharatiya Diwas (PBD), an annual celebratory day that marks the contribution of overseas persons of Indian origin (PIO) towards their homeland.

This is the first PIO Parliamentary Conference and it is a way of reaching out to the Indian community overseas by the government.

The Ministry of External Affairs (MEA), in order to celebrate the spirit of the conference, has also organised an open competition to design a logo that would best reflect the spirit of the First PIO Parliamentarian Conference. 

(With ANI inputs)