India hastily built a brick wall so US President Donald Trump wouldn't see a slum as his motorcade passed through the city of Ahmedabad on Monday.
Authorities earlier this month commissioned a 1,640-foot-long, 7-foot-high brick wall along a road near the Sardar Patel Stadium in Ahmedabad, Reuters reported.
Trump spoke at the stadium as part of India's "Namaste Trump" rally on Monday morning.
The new brick wall obscured the homes of 2,000 people living in the slum, according to the Associated Press.
"Apart from security reasons, the wall is also part of a beautification and cleanliness drive," said Mayor Bijal Patel of Ahmedabad, according to the AP.
"Whenever ministers visit the area, they hide it with temporary green curtains," a resident of the slum told the BBC. "They are building a wall this time. The curtains are taken down eventually, but this wall will remain."
"Poverty and slums are the reality of our life, but Modi's government wants to hide the poor," Parvatbhai Mafabhai, a 30-year resident of the slum, told Reuters.
Forty-five families living in a separate slum near the Sardar Patel Stadium were supplied with eviction notices in advance of Trump's visit, The Guardian reported. Stray dogs, cats, and monkeys were also cleared from the area.
Trump did not mention his trip through the city to the stadium when he addressed the 100,000 Indians gathered there.
Trump visited the Taj Mahal after his speech. He is to meet with Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi and President Ram Nath Kovind on Tuesday to discuss bilateral relations.
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