CEC Gyanesh Kumar Meets Costa Rica Envoy, Boosting India-Costa Rica Ties

In a post on X, the Election Commission of India said, "Chief Election Commissioner of India and Chairperson International IDEA, Shri Gyanesh Kumar met H.E. Mr. Nestor Gabriel Baltodano Vargas, Ambassador of Costa Rica to India, today at Nirvachan Sadan, New Delhi."

Earlier on September 15, External Affairs Minister S Jaishankar extended Independence Day greetings to Costa Rica.

Jaishankar looked forward to further development of India-Costa Rica ties.

In a post on X, he said, "Independence day greetings to FM Arnoldo Andre, the Government and the people of Costa Rica. Look forward to further development of our ties."

India and Costa Rica enjoy cordial and warm relations, which are being strengthened by the growing commercial engagement between the two countries.

Following India's appointment of an Honorary Consul in San Jose in 1995, Costa Rica reciprocated by opening an Honorary Consulate in New Delhi in 1996. Costa Rica opened its Embassy in New Delhi in April 2010. The Indian Embassy in Panama is concurrently accredited to Costa Rica.

There is a great deal of interest in India's history and cultural heritage in Costa Rica and much of the credit for this goes to Prof Hilda Chen Apuy who visited India on a UNESCO scholarship in the 1950's and introduced studies on Indian History, Philosophy and Sanskrit at the University of Costa Rica in San Jose. Prof Hilda's articles on India were published by the Public Diplomacy Division of our Ministry.

Co-operation in the cultural sphere has included performances of Indian cultural troupes, which have been visiting Costa Rica from time to time.

An ICCR sponsored Kuchipudi Classical Dance group led by Tirumalasetti Reddy Lakshmi, performed at the National Theatre, San Jose on 20th October, 2015 to an audience of over 600. The event was attended by several high dignitaries and received wide coverage in the local media.

- ANI