The Indian Panorama

Tag: Professor Indrajit Saluja

  • India’s Independence Day Celebrations Galore

    India’s Independence Day Celebrations Galore

    Indian Americans celebrate the 77th Independence Day with enthusiasm

    The CG addresses the gathering.
    New York Governor Kathy Hochul in her video message spoke highly of India and the Indian Americans.
    Sanjukta Sen and Kruti Acharya sand Bhajans and patriotic songs.
    Consul General Randhir Kumar Jaiswal who hoisted the national flag at Times Square, speaking on the occasion.

    I.S. Saluja

    NEW YORK (TIP):The Consulate General of India in New York, celebrated 77th Independence Day of India on Tuesday, August 15, 2023 at the Consulate in the presence of members of the community. On the occasion, a Flag Hoisting Ceremony was held in the morning in the Consulate Ball Room. Mr. Randhir Jaiswal, Consul General, unfurled the national flag and Indian national anthem was sung. Consul General read out the Address of the President of India and conveyed his greetings to the gathering. The event was made even more special by melodious renditions of patriotic songs by Sanjukta Sen, music teacher with Bharatiya Vidya Bhavan, and her disciple Kruti Acharya.

    Amidst the felicitations, heartening congratulatory messages were received from a host of esteemed local elected officials. Of special significance was a video message from Governor Kathy Hochul of New York State, who highlighted the profound contributions of the Indian community that enrich the cultural and economic tapestry of New York. Commemorative proclamations celebrating India’s 76 years of independence were also issued by the Governors of Massachusetts, Pennsylvania and Ohio.

    The Consul General raised the national flag at a special event organized by the Federation of Indian Associations (FIA – NY/NJ/CT) at the iconic Times Square in New York City. Music and dances brought cheer to the attendees and onlookers. Rimli Roy’s Surati group gave a great dance performance. Among those who attended, included Ustad Amjad Ali Khan, the sarod maestro and the renowned Chef Vikas Khanna. The Times Square event featured the grand unveiling of a symbolic replica of the Konark Sun Temple’s wheel, embodying the essence of India’s philosophy and thought. On the occasion, the iconic Empire State Building in New York City was also lit in India’s tricolors.

    Noteworthy among this year’s festivities was the flag raising ceremony at the historic Bowling Green arena, by the Consul General and Mayor Eric Adams of New York City. This la

    Konark Sun Temple Wheel (Chakra) on display at Times Square.

    ndmark event organized by Mr. Sivadasan Nair of Indian Cultural Association of North America, Inc., was attended by Deputy Mayor of NYC Meera Joshi, Assemblywoman Jennifer Rajkumar, and several senior elected officials of Indian descent in the Mayor’s administration, besides members of the Indian community. The celebrations of Independence Day in Northeast US started on August 05th at Harrisburg, Pennsylvania with an event organized by Asian Indian Americans of Central Pennsylvania (AIACPA) featuring a unique Robotic competition and also a Parade displaying India’s rich culture.

    Among other several community-organized events, the prominent ones included an event organized by Global Organization of People of Indian Origin (GOPIO) at Stamford, Connecticut; flag hoisting ceremony at Philadelphia City Hall by Council of Indian Organizations in Greater Philadelphia; flag hoisting ceremony at Hartford, Connecticut by The India Association of Central Connecticut; India day Parade organized by Council of Heritage and Arts of India, at Williamsville, Buffalo, India Day Parade & Flag Hoisting celebrations organized by Federation of Indian Associations (FIA-NE), at the iconic Boston Harbour and other celebrations. The annual Battery Dance Festival showcased India’s classical dance on August 15, 2023 at Battery Park. FIA NY-NJ-CT will organize the largest India Day Parade, outside of India, on 20th August on Madison avenue. Earlier in the week, the Indo-American Arts Council organized a three-day music festival to commemorate the 77th Independence Day of India featuring prominent artists such as Padma Shri Malini Awasthi and Ustad Amjad Ali Khan.

    To celebrate India’s independence under the aegis of Azadi Ka Amrit Mahotsav (AKAM), the Consulate General of India, New York organized a special event ‘Mitti Ki Khusboo–Mitti Ki Yadein’ on memories of growing up years in India on August 14, 2023. Those who spoke on the occasion included Colonel Virendra Tavathia, Professor Indrajit Saluja, Dr. Amarjit Shastri, Mr. Thomas Mottackal, Mr. Alok Kumar, Mr. Harish Thakkar, Mr. Nachiketa Mitra, , Ms. Vandana Nayak, and Mr. Siddharth Jain. An Exhibition on ‘horrors on partition’ was also displayed in the Consulate. Selfie point was set up for the community members to take a selfie with maati diya in hand and upload on merimaatimeradesh.gov.in, and www.yuva.gov.in with #Har Ghar Tiranga #Meri Maati Mera Desh. A standee with salutation to the brave soldiers was displayed on August 14 and also during the flag hoisting ceremony held at the Consulate on August 15, and later at Times Square.

    Independence Day was celebrated with great enthusiasm at a number of places in New York, New Jersey and Connecticut. In Queens, New York, a parade, organized by Floral Park, Bellerose Indian Merchants Association, was taken out on August 13. A parade in celebration of India’s Independence Day was taken out in New Jersey.

    India’s Independence Day was celebrated at City Hall of Jersey City with Congressman Rob Menendez joining the celebrations on August 17.

    In Nassau County, India’s Independence Day was celebrated at Town of Oyster Bay on August 15. Town Supervisor
    Town of Hempstead Supervisor Don Clavin hosted India’s Independence Day celebration on August 15.

    Then there are upcoming parades and celebrations. The largest India Day Parade outside of India is organized by FIANYNJCT. The 41st edition of the Parade takes place on Sunday, August 20.

    Another parade organized by IDPUSA in Hicksville on Long Island is scheduled for Sunday, August 27.

    In order to recognize and do honor to celebrations, The Indian Panorama will bring readers detailed reports on Independence Day celebrations in the editions to follow in the next two weeks.

    The celebrations organized around Independence Day, this year, had a distinct flavor of Azadi ka Amrit Mahotsav. Wholehearted Participation from members of the diaspora and friends of India transformed the landmark celebrations into a true people’s movement.
    (With inputs from the Consulate General of India, New York)

    Rimli Roy’s Surati group of dancers perform at Chakra Sculpture inauguration.
    Vikas Khanna with two visitors who came to see the Chakra. L to R: Rohini Thapar, Vikas Khanna , and Sachin Vinayak

     

  • Aligarh Alumni Association celebrates balmy Sunday with Picnic

    Aligarh Alumni Association celebrates balmy Sunday with Picnic

    (Photos : Courtesy Mohammed Akbar and Afzal Usmani)

    The Aligarh Alumni Association of Metro-Washington (AAA-DC) organized a picnic on 11th July 2021 at the Black Hill Park, Montgomery County, Maryland. It was an impressive and successful show. The sight of so many friends, long separated by the pandemic, getting together once again after two miserable years, was a pleasant surprise.

    Black Hill Park has an interesting history. A group of Union soldiers from California discovered flecks of gold in the sand near their camp at Great Falls while washing their dishes. They did not tell anyone about their find at the time but came back to the area after the war and quietly acquired the land and formed the Maryland Mining Company. The company never found much gold and the property changed hands, and ultimately a family in the late 1940s made it Black Hill Farmland named after the Black Hills of South Dakota, famous for its gold mines in the 1870s. The owner filled in all the holes, except for one, which he turned into a bomb shelter. The local Montgomery County purchased it in 1965 and opened it to the public. The Park has more than 2,000 acres of land for outdoor recreation with spectacular views of Little Seneca Lake from the many picnic shelters, volleyball courts, playgrounds, and trails. There are over 20 miles of hard and natural surface trails for hiking, mountain biking, and horseback riding. This trail includes a fitness station.

    The AAA-DC is the first Aligarh Alumni Association in North America. Since 1975, it has been serving the literary, cultural, social needs of the South-Asian community.  The association has provided huge financial support for the educational upliftment of the community at the university and various secondary institutions in different parts of the country. During pandemic, it raised a significant amount of money to provide financial help to needy families. It is credited with the establishment of a tradition of annual Mushaira in the continent and almost all iconic poets from the subcontinent, Europe, and North America have graced and participated in its annual mushaira. Even the pandemic could not break the tradition; it organized an international online mushaira, in 2020, using modern audio-visual electronic techniques.

    The annual picnic is an eagerly awaited annual event where people drawn from Indian, Pakistani, and Bangladeshi communities get an opportunity to strengthen their bond and enjoy the food, literary exchanges, games, and share information about families. The picnic was not held last year due to pandemic restrictions. Following CDC guidelines, people who were fully vaccinated and deemed to be relatively safe decided to gather for a picnic.

    Despite hot weather, more than 90 people came to the picnic and enjoyed the hospitality offered by the association. Children especially were very ecstatic about the newfound freedom to run around. There were limitless supplies of grilled chicken and meat patties, corn on the cob along with several homecooked food dishes, watermelon, ice cream, and of course hot tea.

    Professor Indrajit Saluja (Chief Editor, The Indian Panorama) mingled easily with other attendees. He expressed his deep love for two prime universities in India—the Aligarh Muslim University and the Banaras Hindu University, both universities have made great contributions towards the cause of education in India. The Maulana Azad Library is the finest library he had visited in India. Professor Saluja and Bhai H. S. Singh came to the picnic at the invitation of the association.

    Dr. Badruddin Khan—a senior Alig came to picnic with his family from New York City to renew their friendship with old friends. Another invited guest, Professor Marghoob Ashraf also expressed his joy by mingling with old friends from the Alig community.

    “What a wonderful gathering we had. It was a delight to be there and meeting friends, and of course, enjoyed the delicious food’, said Dr. Mike Ghouse, President of the Center for Pluralism.

    Dr. Abu-Saleh Shariff (Executive Secretary, The Justice Sachar Commission) and family, who are relatively new to the town and were impressed with the quality of hospitality, informal atmosphere and friendly culture fostered by the association.

    Although Lalit K. Jha (Chief Correspondent, the Press Trust of India)—also an invited guest was late in arrival, he appreciated the warm welcome and personal interactions with other people.

    An experienced Aligarh Alumni Association worker from Chicago, Dr. Ateeq Ahmad came to this picnic with his wife (Dr. Hina Nazli) to meet his longtime friends from Aligarh and partake in AAA-DC hospitality.

    “I have been coming to AAA-DC picnic regularly and this year’s event was a pleasant surprise, especially encouraging was to see so many younger faces participating enthusiastically,” said Nuzaira Azam-founder-president of the Global Beat Foundation.

    Tabish Hasan Khan, a Postdoctoral Research Associate from University of Virginia School of Medicine (Charlottesville) and Dr. Prabhat Pandey (New Jersey) stated that it was their first experience of AAA-DC picnic, and they were impressed with the gathering and high-quality arrangements.

    Dr. Badar Shaikh (FDA scientist) enjoyed the delicious BBQ and other food items. “Although we were not members, it sure was a pleasure and refreshing to see many friends and acquaintances after a long shut-in due to pandemic. Our congratulations to organizers for doing an excellent job,” he added.

    Many members from other community organizations like the University of Karachi Alumni Association, Indian American Muslim Council, Montgomery County Muslim Council, and Hyderabad Association Metropolitan Washington Area also expressed their joy and the chance to interact freely with attendees.

    President Mohammed Akbar welcomed the guests, especially those who had traveled from out of town. Secretary Mohammed Jaweed thanked all guests and the families who brought delicious food and other items to make the event successful. The association expressed deep appreciation to young men who managed grills and did the cooking on-site during this hot weather.

    (Report prepared by Zafar Iqbal, Ph.D. He can be reached at raabta.india@gmail.com  / (240-328-0162)