Indian American community welcomes India’s CG Pradhan and Rep. Suozzi in New York

- ADVERTISEMENT -

Close to 60 prominent members of the Indian community from New York and New Jersey, including business leaders, community activists, and heads of several organizations assembled to meet and greet India’s Consul General in New York Binaya S. Pradhan, as well as newly elected Rep. Tom Suozzi, D-NY.

The event was held May 20, 2024, at the residence of Ratna and Varinder Bhalla in Long Island, NY. The meeting was also held to kick off an initiative to increase the membership of the Congressional Caucus on India and Indian Americans on Capitol Hill.

Among the several speakers present was Padma Shri recipient  Dr. Sudhir Parikh, chairman and CEO of Parikh Worldwide Media and ITV Gold, and other community leaders, sev eral of whom addressed the gathering. Suozzi and CG Pradhan praised the Indian American community for contributing positively to the US-India relationship.

Dr. Parikh was among the community leaders back in the late 1980s who led the effort to establish and expand the India Caucus and push for the resolution of differences between the two democracies. At the event, Dr. Parikh traced the history of the India Caucus, and how various Congressman like Frank Pallone of New Jersey, and late Rep. Gary Ackerman, joined it at the instance of these leaders. “It became more than 200 members and took US-India relations to the next level, and helped to resolve issues in trade, diplomacy, as well as the nuclear cooperation agreement,” Dr. Parikh said at the gathering.

According to Bhalla, chairman of the Indian American Voters Forum formed in 2008, the membership of the India Caucus has dropped to 109 from a high of 200. Congressman Suozzi was in support of initiating a new drive to increase membership, and earlier this month, a committee was formed with a dedicated mission to increase membership of the India Caucus. It is led by Bhalla, Dr. Parikh, Dr. Dattatreyudu Nori, Dr. Thomas Abraham, Dr. Sunil Mehra, Rajeev Bhambri, Ratna Bhalla, Gobind Munjal, Gunjan Rastogi, Sudhir Vaishnav, and Dev Vishwanath, a press release from Bhalla said.

Congressman Suozzi formally joined the India Caucus at the event.

At the Long Island event, Judge Anthony Paradiso welcomed India’s Consul General Pradhan on behalf of the judiciary of New York. Dr. Sudha Parikh welcomed the ambassador with flowers. Pradhan called Suozzi a “Friend of India” and, for the Caucus induction ceremony, welcomed him with a garland.

NAVIKA Chairman Haridas Kotahwala and CEO Naveen Shah presented an Aum Scarf to the Congressman.

In his closing remarks, Consul General Pradhan enumerated numerous advantages for both India and the United States that occurred after the formation of the India Caucus, including a 50 times increase in bilateral trade and the largest number of Indian students coming to America for higher studies.

Among others, the event was attended by State Bank of India CEO Prasanta Tripathy, Cheapo Air CEO Sam Jain, Sunil Tristar of India TV, renowned journalist George Joseph, AIA National President Gobind Munjal, Nargis Dutt Cancer Foundation President Hussain Baqueri, American Punjabi Society President Gary Sikka, Guru Nanak Gurudwara Founder Paramjit Singh Bedi, JUS Punjabi CEO Penny Sandhu Ji, Diwali at Time Square Founder Neeta Bhasin, former IALI President Satnam Parhar and Jackson Heights Merchant Association Secretary, Mohinder Verma.

Committee member Nori’s biography, From Mantada to Manhattan, signifying his rise from a small village in India to becoming the Chief of Oncology at the world-renowned Sloan Kettering Hospital in Manhattan, was presented to the dignitaries. Bhalla was conferred with a special recognition by Rep. Souzzi for his community leadership.

A surprise of the evening was Congressman Suozzi entertaining the guests with a famous Frank Sinatra song.