The Russian Enclave of Kaliningrad and the village of Rusnė in western Lithuanian with a meagre population of 3,000 people face each other and are divided by a narrow stretch of a local river.
In a major statement of peace, Lithuanian prime minister Algirdas Butkevičius and Gandhi’s grandson and former governor of West Bengal Gopal Krishna Gandhi will unveil a statue of friendship between Gandhi and Jewish architect Hermann Kallenbach on 2 October.
Kallenbach was born in Rusnė.
The local municipality officials have chosen a prime spot right next to the river and by a historic Jewish synagogue to install the monument.
It is expected to become a major tourist draw besides playing the part of spreading Gandhi’s doctrine of non-violence, officials say.
Vytautas Laurinaitis, the mayor of the district of Šilutė told The Times of India: “Gandhi and his philosophy are taught to our students and his life story is included in their text books. However, Kallenbach was the major discovery for us… We want to show it as Kallenbach returning to his home”.
Read more on The Times of India.
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