Malawi President Bingu Wa Mutharika was on Thursday conferred an honorary degree of D.Litt. by the Delhi University, where he had studied for five years in the 1960s.
Mr Mutharika, who was conferred the degree at a ceremony here, had come to Delhi as a student of Sri Ram College of Commerce, where he studied for three years and then went on to join the Delhi School of Economics for his masters. The man, who has been the President of the South African nation since 2004, had met vice-president Hamid Ansari, when the latter had visited the nation in January this year.
It was during this interaction that Mr Mutharika had dwelled upon his links with the Delhi University. He had told the gathering that he considered himself a “Dilliwala” and also a “product of India”. He had gone on to add that the reason for his unbroken stint as a student of the Delhi University was the fact that he was always broke, having no money to return home. However, in between the study sessions, Mr Mutharika also managed to travel to various destinations across India, including cities like Jaipur and Chennai.
On a six-day visit of India, Mr Mutharika, who is also the chairperson of the African Union, has already met the President and the Prime Minister to discuss various bilateral issues ranging from energy to agriculture sectors. During Mr Mutharika’s current visit, India has announced a credit to the tune of $10 crores.