After a kick-off meeting last week, another meeting was organized at Woodlands Restaurant Oct. 17 to work out the details for the upcoming Regional Pravasi Bhartiya Divas program, to be held Nov. 14-15 at the Westin Bonaventure Hotel here. The theme for RPBD-Los Angeles will be “The Indian Diaspora: Defining a New Paradigm in India-U.S. Relationship,” capturing the ethos of the ongoing relationship between India and the U.S. and the important role being played by the diaspora in this regard. Previous venues for the RPBDs have included London, Sydney, Toronto, Singapore, Durban, Mauritius, The Hague and New York.
Various committees were formed along with a coordination committee for overall management of the sub committees. The coordination committee will include Inder Singh (chairman), Ashok Madan, Dilip Butani, Navin Gupta, Kewal Kanda, Vasu Pawar, Abdulgani Shaikh and Subba Gopavarapu. The various sub-committees formed include: venue selection, vendor coordination, website, PA system, helping speakers, event planner, media release, brochure, cultural, catering, welcome, community outreach, social media, security, decoration and venue staff coordination.
As finalized by the Government of India, the inaugural session starts on Nov. 14 at 6 p.m. with External Affairs Sushma Swaraj chairing the event. There will be a cultural program followed by refreshments and cocktails. On the following day, Nov. 15, there will be three plenary sessions starting from 10:00 a.m. till lunch, with the following topics: Increasing Engagement with Indian Diaspora; Role of Culture and Youth in Maintaining Links to India; and Government of India Schemes on Clean Ganga, Smart Cities, Skill Development, Infrastructure Development, Waste Management, and Swachh Bharat, Solar and other renewable energies; Digital India, etc.
The afternoon session will have four parallel sessions: 1) Innovation and Entrepreneurship; 2) Education (including Community Colleges system, ties between educational institutions, etc.); Skills & Vocational Training; 3) Manufacturing and Make in India; Bilateral Business Opportunities in various fields including commodities, services, IT / BT, Infrastructure; and 4) Use of Soft Power and engagements through culture. A cultural program from 6-7 p.m., and a dinner hosted by the Ministry of Overseas Indian Affairs will round out the day.
Registration for the seminar can be done at the official website at www.RPBDLA.org. For more information, call Inder Singh: 818-406-0296, Ashok Madan: 562-498-0202, Dilip Butani: 562-569-6722, Kewal Kanda: 562-897-6976, Navin Gupta: 909-718-9478, Vasu Pawar: 909-389-8262, Abdulgani Sheikh: 714-209-6022 and Subba Gopavarapu: 949-400-1853.
The objective of the Convention is to provide a platform for the Indian community in the USA to contribute to the relationship between the two countries, USA and India and explore ways to give back to the mother country. The members of the Indian community will have opportunity to convey their concerns and aspirations to the Government of India. The RPBD in Los Angeles is for the Indian American community and anyone who is interested in becoming involved in India’s growing relationship with the US.
The Pravasi Bharatiya Divas (PBD) has been celebrated in India on January 9th since 2003 to mark the contributions of the overseas Indian community in the development of India, Further details are available at http://www.rpbdla.org. Participants can register online at http://www.rpbdla.org/registration