- Mauritian and Indian flags, poles and red carpet planned
The inauguration of the new landing strip and the pier in Agaléga is imminent. It is scheduled for the end of February or beginning of March. But already, a delegation will travel to the island aboard the Mauritius Trochetia this Wednesday, February 21, we learn from sources within the Ministry of National Infrastructure.
A limited number of people will be part of the official delegation. This will include, among others, two officers from the Ministry of National Infrastructure. The officers will take with them 100 flags, including 50 quadricolors and 50 national flags of India, as well as poles and a red carpet, our sources indicate. This equipment will be installed on the island in preparation for the imminent inauguration. “Staff from the Outer Islands Development Corporation (OIDC) will be responsible for installing this equipment on the island,” it added.
Neither the opposition nor the deputies from constituency no. 3 (Port-Louis Maritime/Port-Louis Est) will be included in the delegation. “We have made several requests, through parliamentary questions, to allow members of the opposition to go to Agaléga. But we were made to understand that this would be difficult. We believe that government and opposition MPs should attend the inauguration of the new airstrip and pier,” says an opposition member.
The inauguration of the new landing strip and the pier at Agaléga was the source of several controversies. The Indian media have repeatedly mentioned the installation of an Indian military base on the island, which the Mauritian government has never missed the opportunity to deny.
The Prime Minister, Pravind Jugnauth, has always denied these allegations. He highlighted the fact that this is the first time in the history of Agaléga that such modernization is underway. He also stressed that the island had been neglected by the former government.
