US President likely to visit 26/11 police memorial at Marine Drive

Will US President Barrack Obama visit police memorial at Marine Drive?

Will US President Barrack Obama visit police memorial at Marine Drive?

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The state government is hoping to finalise the sites US President Barrack Obama would visit during his stay in the city by next week.

The US embassy had informed the state government that President Obama was keen on paying a tribute to the martyrs of the 26/11 terror attacks. The details of the functions that Obama would attend in Mumbai are not finalised but the US embassy has handed out a rough list of 20-odd potential sites for his day and a half visit to the city next month.

The state government has suggested that police memorial at the police gymkhana at Marine Drive be selected for this tribute. The memorial was installed to commemorate 16 police personnel who laid down their lives during the attacks.

“The police memorial does not pose security risk and it also conveys the right message. The embassy was thinking of asking the President to pay a tribute at Trident but that could be seen as elitist,’’ said a senior official from the state secretariat.

Obama would be staying at the Taj Hotel and will address business leaders at a conference at Trident hotel.

The Home department has told the embassy that it is not keen on sites like CST station or Nariman House, since these pose security risk.

The agenda is likely to be fixed by next week and announced by the consulate. The embassy and the state government are unlikely to hand out the exact itinerary of the President to avoid any security breach.