18-year-old Ketki Arora, who is one of the lucky few, shares her excitement
18-year-old Ketki Arora, who is one of the lucky few, shares her excitement
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Ready for history: Preparations are on at the Capitol Hill in Washington for Barack Obama's inauguration on January 20. Pic/AFP |
Ketki Arora (18) from Gurgaon will witness history on January 20. She is one of the six students from India who have been chosen to attend the inauguration of US President-elect Barack Obama in Washington, DC.
The Std XII student of Pathways World School was nominated by her teachers to attend the Global Youth Leaders Conference, which led to her selection for this historic ceremony.
"I'm really excited and thankful to the teachers who nominated me," said Ketki, who is already in the US. "It's such a great feeling to witness history in the making."
'Obama will bring a massive change'For five days, Ketki will join other students from around the world in activities marking the presidential inauguration on the steps of the Capitol Hill. She will also attend the official inauguration ceremony as part of the University Presidential Inaugural Conference, which is aimed at providing scholars with a deeper understanding of the history behind the electoral process and the traditions surrounding the presidential inauguration.
"I am not very keen on politics. It's international relations that really interests me," said Ketki, adding that the inauguration would have been iconic irrespective of whether McCain or Obama had been elected. "It was either going to be the first African-American or the oldest person elected to office. My anticipation would re-main the same in both cases."
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Proud: Ketki and five other Delhi students will join scholars from around the world |
Ketki is also looking forward to meeting other international leaders. "We will be meeting some key speakers, but we will know the final schedule only tomorrow."
When asked what was the one question she wanted to ask Obama, Ketki said, "What changes will you make to make a difference in your country?" Her question stems from the firm belief that Obama "will bring a massive change for the world". Ketki's parents are proud of the opportunity she has earned. Her father Sanjeev Arora, MD of Femella Fashions, said, "I am very proud of my daughter and excited that she is going to be a part of history."
The other students who have been selected to attend the function are Karan Paul, Inayat Chaudhry, Sohraab Walia, Rishab Jain and Abhishek Swarup all Delhi residents.
Rs 1.2 lakh
The cost of the trip per student
