NEW YORK CITY: The Association of Indians in America (AIA) Medical Council Awards Gala, revived after a gap of 15 years, was held on May 3rd at the iconic Cipriani 42^nd Street, an Italian Renaissance-inspired masterpiece with marble columns, soaring ceilings, inlaid floors, and spectacular chandeliers which make it a unique and special event space. An ultimate experience in beauty and elegance, AIA could not have found a better place in New York for its historic event.

The purpose of organizing this Medical Council Awards Gala. According to AIA National President Gobind Munjal who has led AIA for the last more than 3 years, is to recognize and honor the second generation of Physicians and Surgeons of Indian descent, who have excelled in their career, academics and profession, as the first generation has already made a mark and earned their recognition”.

Mr. Munjal, pointing to the unique feature of this gala, said:

“This AIA Medical Council Awards Gala is of major historical importance, as younger members of AIA are taking leadership roles and organizing this event, while we, the senior members, are supporting them. You will be glad to know that 50% of the people attending this Gala were from the younger generation. This will make young professionals interested in taking leadership roles, thereby expanding its membership and longevity of the organization”.

Mr. Munjal continued:

“This Medical Council Gala’s tremendous success has excited a lot of next generation people and they have expressed interest in getting involved and becoming members. We will be having these Galas every 2 years or so. Our major future plan is to make these next generation people as members and get them involved and slowly prepare them to take over and start leading the organization. For that purpose, we are starting to revamp our website to suit their requirements.

AIA (The Association of Indians in America) is growing with new members and more active participation by the next generation. Since the times have changed, so are the needs of the Indian Community. The present leadership of AIA is actively pursuing the next generation’s participation in order to address those changing needs. We are extremely excited that the younger members of AIA are now taking the leadership roles and have worked tirelessly to make this Medical Council Awards Celebrations a sold-out event.

“I would like to thank the medical council chair Dr Dolly Manvar and all the 4 vice chairs of next generation; Dr Atul Kukar, Dr Pallavi Manvar Singh, Dr Aprajita Mattoo and Dr Pratichi Goenka for their commitment and hard work in making this Medical Council Awards Gala a huge success.”

With the banquet room full to capacity, the guests, young and old, dressed in their best, conversed and interacted, with the DJ Kucha music magic filling the air. There was excitement, and an enjoyable feeling of comfort, too.

Chair Board of Trustees Dr Samin Sharma in his remarks, said that in his past 15 years of association with AIA, this Gala is the best he has ever seen. He also remarked that for the first time we have seen in any organization so many people from the younger generation attending the Gala, which is remarkable. He mentioned that AIA needs to pick a charity, through which the donations can be channeled in order to reach to the needy people in India. He said he has set aside an amount of $100,000 towards this cause.

Then came the time to celebrate honorees and a word from Mr. Gobind Munjal, the President of the AIA.

Mr. Munjal welcomed and thanked everyone for their presence to celebrate the occasion, honoring some of the finest representatives of Indo-American community. “They are role models for everyone and an exceptional source of pride and joy for the Indian American Diaspora worldwide”, said Mr. Munjal.

AIA Medical Council Honorees included Dr. Deepak Bhatt, Dr. Latha Chandran, Dr. Chethan Sathya, and Dr. Shuvendu Sen. Each Honoree had their own unique quality and from diverse background. Dr Deepak Bhatt is a researcher, Dr Latha Chandran is an Educator, Dr Chethan Sathya is into Public Health and Gun Violence Prevention and Dr Shuvendu Sen is an Author and has written books of acclaim.

Dr. Nirmal Mattoo, Past National President of the AIA was honored with Lifetime Achievement Award. Dr Mattoo has also been a past Chairman Board of Trustees of AIA and Co Editor of the book Ananya, A Portrait of India published by AIA. Dr. Mattoo is the Chairman of the Indo American Arts Council. He is also the President of the Mattoo Center of India Studies at State University of New York. It is our honor to present the lifetime achievement award to Dr Nirmal Mattoo.

DJ Kucha regaled the audience with the choicest musical compositions while the guests set ablaze the dance floor with their ecstatic movements. 

About AIA

Association of Indians in America (AIA) is the oldest non-profit national organization founded in 1967. At that time, the vision and the purpose of AIA was to help unite, support and preserve rights of the small number of Indian immigrants that came to America (currently over 4.8 million), and assisting them in their transition into American culture while preserving their Indian heritage.

Our motto is:  INDIAN HERITAGE, AMERICAN COMMITMEN

 It was through the efforts of AIA that

• Indians were enumerated as a separate and distinct category in the US Census in 1980.
• The First ever Public event of “Diwali” Celebration organized by AIA took place at the Iconic South Street Seaport in New York City in 1987, and has continued since then.
• In October 2003, Diwali at the behest of AIA was started and celebrated in the white House.
• Now Diwali is recognized as a holiday in New York and many other States.
• AIA initiated Honor Banquet in 1973 followed by Medical Council Awards in 1974. Many of our honorees included Nobel Laureates, Leading artists; Physicians and academicians.
• A unique program called Project India was initiated in 1973. The Association raised more than 15 million dollars fund for disbursements for medical equipment, Midwest floods in 1993 and Florida floods in USA, Latur Earthquake Maharashtra 1993 & Tsunami 2004 in India.
• AIDS prevention and treatment; Project India is an ongoing activity for more than 50 years.
• In the Year 1997, on the occasion of the 50th Anniversary of India’s Independence, Association of Indians in America (AIA) published an academic, culturally rich, and scholarly written book, in association with India Study Center of stony Brook University titled “Ananya: A Portrait of India” which has received critical and popular acclaim.
• In 2018, AIA celebrated its 50th Anniversary in New York at a Gala Dinner in Garden city Hotel
• During Covid 2020-2022, Association contributed hundreds of Oxygenators to different hospitals in India across the country and renovated and built 2 schools in Kerala and Rajasthan, India.
• On May 6^th 2023, AIA celebrated 75^th anniversary of India’s Independence at an Honor Banquet at Terrace on the Park in Flushing Meadow, New York attended by dignitaries like Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer and NYC Mayor Eric Adams
• The above are a few of the initiatives and achievements of the AIA. The Association is planning many more projects, and with the arrival on the scene of our next generation, it is hoped to not only maximize the number of projects but also increase their funding, quality and diversity.