President Ram Nath Kovind arrived in Secunderabad in Telangana on Friday for his annual southern sojourn at the Rashtrapati Nilayam from December 20 to 28, 2019.
He was received by Telangana Governor Tamilisai Soundararajan and other top officials at the Air Force Station in Hakimpet.
Warm welcome Hon'ble President of India Sri Ramnath Kovind Ji Received at Hakimpet Airport today.@rashtrapatibhvn pic.twitter.com/bwI9PscjRv
— Dr Tamilisai Soundararajan (@DrTamilisaiGuv) December 20, 2019
Hon'ble President of India Sri Ramnath Kovind Ji at Rashtrapati Nilayam Bollaram, #Hyderabad on 20-12-2019.@rashtrapatibhvn @IPRTelangana pic.twitter.com/r1AFCQYJ23
— Dr Tamilisai Soundararajan (@DrTamilisaiGuv) December 20, 2019
During his southern stay, the President will launch a mobile App of the Indian Red Cross Society, Telangana State Branch at the Raj Bhavan, Hyderabad on December 22.
On December 23, he will visit Puducherry where he will address the 27th annual convocation of the Pondicherry University, a statement issued by the Rashtrapati Bhavan said.
On December 25, the President is scheduled to visit the Vivekananda Rock Memorial and Vivekananda Kendra in Kanyakumari, Tamil Nadu.
On December 27, the President will host a reception for senior dignitaries of Telangana, ministers, officials, leading citizens, and academicians at the Rashtrapati Nilayam in Secunderabad.
The Rashtrapati Nilayam in Secunderabad is the President of India's official residence in south India. Every year the President spends a few days at the Rashtrapati Nilayam during the winter.
Located at Bolarum, the building was taken over from the last Nizam of Hyderabad, Mir Osman Ali Khan, after India attained independence and handed over to the President’s Secretariat. The main building was constructed in 1860 over 2,500 sqm, though it oversees a total land area of 97.62 acres.
It was constructed by Nizam Nazir-ud-Dowla, the fourth ruler of the Asaf Jahi dynasty, who governed Hyderabad from 1829 to 1857.
Presidents including Dr Rajendra Prasad, Dr Sarvapalli Radhakrishnan, VV Giri, Neelam Sanjiva Reddy, Giani Zail Singh, R Venkatraman, Dr Shankar Dayal Sharma, KR Narayanan, APJ Abdul Kalam, Pratibha Patil and Pranab Mukherjee have stayed at the Nilayam.
With PTI inputs