To commemorate Mahatma Gandhi's Birth Anniversary, which has been designated by the United Nations as International Day of Non-Violence, an India-China Seminar was organised by the Consulate General of India in Shanghai on October 26, 2010. About thirty Indian and Chinese academic professionals and business persons participated in the event.  Consul General Ms Riva Ganguly Das delivered the welcome address at the inaugural session. She underlined the relevance of Mahatma Gandhi's ideas and philosophy in today's world. This was followed by an address by Mr. Vika Mazwi Khumalo, Consul General of South Africa, who highlighted Gandhiji's importance in South Africa's liberation struggle and underlined that Mahatma Gandhi belongs to the whole world.  Dr. Wang Xiao Shu, Executive Vice President of the Shanghai People's Association for Friendship with Foreign Countries (SPAFFC) delivered the keynote address at the inaugural session.  He attached great importance to the mechanism of dialogue and exchange of ideas between Academics and Businessmen to further strengthen bilateral cooperation between India and China and said SPAFFC would continue to extend its full support to such efforts in future.

 
The inaugural session was followed by a seminar on India-China relations focusing on Trade & Business relations and Academic & Cultural Exchanges. The participants appreciated the effort made by the Consulate to organise the informal dialogue and made a number of suggestions to further strengthen India-China relations especially in the field of cultural and academic exchanges. A documentary on Mahatma Gandhi was shown during the event.