Chennai: German President Frank-Walter Steinmeier started his two-day tour of Tamil Nadu today with a visit to the plant of a German auto-maker near here.  

Steinmeier visited the Daimler India Commercial Vehicle (DICV) facility at Oragadam, near here, where he was welcomed by the company's India Managing Director and CEO, Erich Nesselhauf. Steinmeier undertook a tour of the manufacturing plant.  

The German president, who is on a five-day visit to India, arrived in the city in the afternoon. He was accorded a traditional welcome at the airport with a Bharatnatyam performance, a video of which was uploaded on the official Twitter handle of the German Embassy, @GermanyinIndia.  

"Very cordial welcome for German President Frank-Walter Steinmeier at Madras Airport Station, Chennai. Looking forward to our meetings in Tamil Nadu," another tweet put out by @GermanyinIndia, said.  

Meanwhile, Steinmeier's wife, Elke Budenbende, visited the office of an NGO, working in the area of children's rights, and interacted with children, young men and women there.   She also held discussions with UNICEF India representative Yasmin A Haque there.   Budenbende also visited the Sri Kapaleeshwarar temple in the city and offered prayers. 

Both the German president and the first lady have a host of events scheduled for today and tomorrow here. After arriving in India on Thursday, the German president had visited Varanasi in Uttar Pradesh. He also had an interaction with students at the Delhi University.  

Yesterday, Steinmeier held wide-ranging talks with the Indian leadership, including Prime Minister Narendra Modi and Vice President M Venkaiah Naidu. He also met President Ram Nath Kovind at the Rashtrapati Bhavan.  

After a visit to the sea-side town of Mahabalipuram near here tomorrow, he is scheduled to return to Germany. PTI