Surendra Ullal, Madhu Patel, and Harish Rao
CHICAGO: India Post keeps on getting a good number of messages greeting India and Indians Diaspora in USA on Amrit Mahotsav commemorating the decades-long journey of India after achieving freedom from British Yoke.
We have great pleasure in reproducing many of them starting with the Indian Consul General in Chicago Shri Amit Kumar, and followed with other prominent names in the community.
Iftekhar Shareef, Community Activist and Trustee of the Federation of Indian Associations Chicago said, “I am truly honored to be part of the celebration of 75th India’s Independence, not only is India’s Independence Day a historic celebration world wide especially in this great country USA, which makes one remember and honor the mighty sacrifices our courageous leader and fighters put forward for our country, but also a day to take pride, celebrate and respect our noble country’s rich honor, velour, rich history, culture and tradition. Most importantly, the day makes us all remember the core value our country was built on- peace and freedom of expression.
Our Independence Day celebrations are marked by grand I-Day celebrations held at Lal Quila, in New Delhi, a speech delivered by our country’s Prime Minister Modi Ji, flag hoisting and other state and national level events to pay respects. On the community level, many associations including Federation Of Indian Associations (FIA-Chicago) societies and club host celebrations, host movies and celebrate the country’s rich culture.
There’s also a unique tradition related to flying kites, which dates back to the freedom fight. In the early days of protest and marches, people used to fly kites, using it as a medium of protest. Ever since, it became a mark of tradition to celebrate autonomy, freedom and peace. One can sight many kites in the sky on the day. There are kite flying competitions as well.
On this glorious Day, take time out to be reflective of how truly precious this gift is. Always remember the sweat and sacrifice made by our heroes who have made this day a reality. Happy Independence Day. Remembering our past is extremely important. But we also have to think about building our future. Let’s do everything to keep our freedom and carry it through the years. Happy Independence Day!”
For hundreds of years India was ruled by the United Kingdom and our country was a part of the British Empire. The British has taken over a lot of the world and India was one of its many colonies. Before they came, India was made up of many kingdoms. After being ruled by them for years, the mutual feelings toward foreign rule really brought the country together. United, the people of the country struggled to free itself from British rule for many years. We officially became independent on 15 August, 1947. To commemorate this historic event, we celebrate our independence on 15th August every year. Jai Hind.
Falaguni Rana, a community member in South west suburb of Chicago was overwhelmed with the huge successes of India Community Outreach (ICO) celebration of the 7th Naperville India Day colorful parade held on August 8 2o21 as it was a sight to behold. India Day celebration in Naperville has quickly grown into one of the largest Indian American festivals in Chicagoland.
ICO celebrated 75th year of India’s Independence and it was instrumental in bringing the Chicagoland & Midwest community together to experience Indian Culture and Heritage through Parade, Education, Food & Entertainment.
It was attended by thousands of people in 2015 through 2020 with a significant growth expected in 2021. . Some of the floats included Punjabi association, Maharashtra Mandal, MAFS, Kerala association, Tamil Sangamam, and many others.
The evening concert by Sukhbir Singh was supposed to be headlined by his master of amazing voice but due to heavy rains that evening concert was cancelled. Falguni received outstanding achievement award teaching Children Krishna dance and also shlokas.
Gladson Varghese President AAEIO – Independence Day is a day to honor and remember all of the freedom fighters who battled for the country’s independence. August 15, 1947, India gained independence from British.
The day serves as a reminder of the struggle for independence and commemorates the hard work of freedom fighters who laid down their lives for the nation.
We are country of various religions and customs, languages and culture…may this independence bring harmony between communities. Let us celebrate Indian Independence Day by coming together, uniting against all the odds as one big country.
Freedom was earned in the hardest way possible but let’s not forget to fight to protect it too. Let us all be proud of our beloved nation and we all have to collectively strive to make India Vibrant, strong and supreme. Happy Independence Day.
PROF Ghanshyam N. Pandey, Ph.D. Chairman, Board of Trustees Association of Indians in America (AIA), Illinois Chapter observed that “it is my privilege and honor to offer my best wishes to people of India and my mother country on the eve of 75th anniversary of India’s independence. India achieved independence on August 15, 1947, after a long and protracted war of independence with British India. However, the independence came with the price, as another country known as Pakistan was carved out of India at that time and all princely states also had a choice to be independent. Thus, India was fragmented at the time of independence.
This issue was handled by Sardar Patel and India became one unit with the integration of all states into a republic on June 26, 1952. More recently, with the abrogation of Article 370, Kashmir was also fully integrated with the Republic of India. India also had to deal with settling millions of migrants from Pakistan who were settled and integrated with the general population. Food shortage was another problem India had to face after its independence and after a long effort and research; India became self-sufficient in terms of food production. India has made tremendous progress in space technology and industrial development.
However, basic science research needs to be encouraged more, as basic science is the mother of all inventions and technology. In order to compete with other countries, India has to make investments in basic science. IT in India is very well developed, but industrial production, although high needs to be further encouraged and export increased. Some problems still remain and need to be addressed, such as corruption, black money, plight of underprivileged and some minorities. In sum, India has tackled many issues and problems and has made tremendous progress. I salute Mother India, and of course my best wishes on the eve of the Independence. Jaihind!
Dear SAAPRI Family,
Shobhana Johri Verma, Executive Director, South Asian American Policy & Research Institute – TheSouth Asian Americans experience many different kinds of hate crimes. Unfortunately, not enough of those crimes get reported to authorities. This past year has seen a rise in Anti-Asian sentiment across the country. Anti-Asian sentiment is not a new phenomenon. However, due to the COVID-19 pandemic, there is an increase in hate crimes perpetrated against Asian and Asian American communities across the United States.
The sensitive and private nature of hate crimes, coupled with a complicated system of documenting and reporting those crimes, has led to an underreporting of violent and nonviolent crimes that threaten the physical and mental health of the over 19 million people of Asian descent living in the country. SAAPRI is starting the SAAPRI Hate Crime Reporting project which will collect data to create concrete recommendations to improve the hate crime reporting process in Illinois.
As part of this initiative, SAAPRI wants to understand what kinds of hate crimes the South Asian American community experiences. Your story is important. By gathering information, we can push for better protection, educational resources, and policies that can put an end to discrimination, hate and xenophobia.
A brief survey below to help SAAPRI learn more about your own experiences. If you know someone who might be interested in helping with this survey, it would be good and helpful sharing the SAAPRI survey efforts Share the survey link and encourage those interested to complete the survey
This form is for research and data collection purposes. It is not to be used to report hate crimes. Please contact your local law enforcement authority if you have been a victim of a hate crime. www.saapri.org Have a great year ahead!
