PM Modi gives Gujarati name to WHO chief: I will call him Tulsibhai

WHO Chief Dr Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus has been given a Gujarati name by Prime Minister Narendra Modi. This happened at the Global AYUSH & Innovation Summit in Mahatma Gandhi's birthplace in Gandhinagar on Wednesday.

Dr Tedros, who said he has become a "pucca Gujarati", was given the name Tulsibhai by PM Modi.

PM Modi said, "WHO Director-General Tedros is a good friend of mine. He told me whatever he is today, it is because of Indian teachers. He said he is proud to be associated with India. This morning he told me: 'I have become a pucca Gujarati. Have you decided a Gujarati name for me?'"

As the WHO chief and the audience laughed with PM Modi, he announced, "As a Gujarati, I will call him Tulsi bhai."

PM Modi explained why he gave the name to Dr Tedros. " Tulsi is a plant that modern generations are forgetting, but it has been worshipped for generations. You can also use the Tulsi plant in marriage. And Gujarati name won't do without 'bhai'."