Meira Kumar, Speaker of the Lok Sabha, the Lower House of Indian Parliament, inaugurates an exhibition on textiles called 'Power Cloths of the Commonwealth'.

The exhibition features textiles from 15 Commonwealth Countries, celebrating the upcoming Games in India's capital New Delhi.

Peter Varghese, the Australian High Commissioner to India, speaks of the significance of the exhibition.

[Peter Varghese, Australian High Commissioner to India]:
"This is a celebration for the Commonwealth at a time when I think we need to celebrate the Commonwealth in both symbolic and literal sense. It reflects the connecting thread that runs through the Commonwealth of Nations and how. This exhibition should approach power in the Commonwealth through the medium of textiles because the power of the Commonwealth is quite unique, it’s not measured in the hard language of military might or economic weight but rather it’s measured in the softer language of diversity, connectedness and the power of ideas.”

Meira Kumar explains that the exhibition helps facilitate understanding.

[Meira Kumar, Speaker, Lower House of Indian Parliament]:
"See, 22 countries are participating in it and this is organized ahead of the Commonwealth Games and the clothes and textiles from all these countries are showcased in it. There is history behind the growth of textiles, which people are witnessing here and it also improves mutual understanding. No doubt this kind of exhibition helps.”

Apart from the nearly 10,000 athletes and officials, New Delhi is expecting a huge inflow of tourists during the event, set to be held between 3 and 14 of October.

The 12-day extravaganza will be India's biggest sporting event since the 1982 Asian Games in New Delhi.