Minus any fanfare, the India-Africa Forum Summit 2015 has had a quiet launch of its Twitter handle, Facebook page and dedicated website - with just about two months to go for India's mega diplomatic bash that is expected to see 50 African heads gathered in New Delhi in October.
Though billed as one of the biggest diplomatic events in India's history, the launch of the social websites and even the official logo of a lion was done very quietly 15 days ago.
The website - http://www.iafs.in/index.php, the Facebook page - https://www.facebook.com/IndiaAfricaSummit and twitter handle -@indiafrica2015 are being keenly followed by the 54 African nations that are being invited for the October 26-29 summit.
The logo of the event, the face of a lion, with one half an Indian one and the other half an African lion, is interspersed with the maps of the African continent and India in the background, topped with vibrant colours.
The lion face is an attempt to focus on the commonalities of India and the African countries, sources told IANS.
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The merging of the two lion faces is also a reference to Gondwanaland, when the African and Indian subcontinent were part of one landmass millions of years ago, till they separated over time.
Referring to the millennia-old ties, the IAFS website says: "Africa is our mother continent. The dynamics of geology may have led our lands to drift apart, but history, culture and the post-colonial development have brought us together again. The visual identity symbolises our coming together for a future that is progressive, empowered, and peaceful."
The lion is - "Proud, Courageous, Bold and on the Prowl, ready to take on the future and seize every opportunity", it says.
"The logo is a tribute to our shared histories and dreams, our common societal commitment to pluralism, inclusiveness and creation of a world that is fair to all its inhabitants. It recognises that in this globalised age we live interconnected lives and reflects the vision of a sustainable and multi-faceted partnership using geometrical patterns."
The website has the pithy caption: "Diverse Yet United: Together Towards Tomorrow" - in a reflection of the close ties between both sides.
The Facebook page, which already has over 3,500 likes, keeps up a constant stream of information on India-Africa relations, especially on the visits to and fro.
