Prime Minister Narendra Modi said on Thursday that seeing the statue of Mahatma Gandhi at the United Nations Headquarters has made every Indian proud.

The statue of 'The Father of the Nation' was unveiled at the North Lawn Gardens of the United Nations.

A post on PM Modi's official Twitter handle read, "It makes every Indian proud to see the bust of Mahatma Gandhi at the @UN HQ. May the Gandhian thoughts and ideals make our planet more prosperous and further sustainable development."

External Affairs Minister S Jaishankar and United Nations Secretary-General Antonio Guterres had unveiled the Mahatma's bust at the prestigious North Lawn Gardens of the UN headquarters.
Gandhi's bust is a gift from India to the UN and is the first sculpture of the Mahatma to be installed at its headquarters.

The UN Resident Coordinator in India Shombi Sharp said it is an 'opportune gift', as Mahatma Gandhi's principles have a defining and lasting influence on multilateralism and the global work of the United Nations.

"It is an honour that the Mahatma's bust is being unveiled at the UN headquarters, where his values have been embedded in our collective vision, work and very existence. I thank the Government of India for this opportune gift to all of us. Mahatma Gandhi is a global icon of peace. His principles of Ahimsa (peace) and Satya (Truth) have a defining and lasting influence on multilateralism and the global work of the United Nations," Sharp said.

Stressing the crisis that the world is facing today, he added that the global community has a lot to learn from Gandhi's powerful ideology of non-violence and the concepts of sustainability and the earth as one family.

"With the overlapping crises the world faces today, from conflicts to climate change, the global community has a lot to learn from Gandhi's powerful ideology of non-violence and the concepts of sustainability and the earth as one family. India's G20 Presidency has notably adopted the theme of 'One Earth, One Family, One Future'" Sharp said.

UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres tweeted, "Mahatma Gandhi was an uncompromising advocate for peaceful co-existence, non-discrimination & pluralism. The new installation located at @UN Headquarters will serve as a reminder of the values Gandhi upheld, and to which we must remain committed."

(with inputs from ANI)