IndiaPost.com - 50,000 join india’s I-Day

India Post News Service

NEW YORK: "Altogether, it was a great success," said Police Captain Stanley George, an Indian American in the NYPD, of the India Day Parade in New York City. As Executive Officer of the 13th Precinct, Capt. George was directly involved in the police planning for the Indian parade on Sunday. "I felt happy and proud and glad to have been directly involved; it was personally rewarding for me," he told India Post.

Stanley George is the only Indian American serving at the level of Captain in the NYPD. Although he started in the force in 1989 as a civilian accountant, his interactions with the uniformed members of the force and a personal call to public service motivated him to join the in 1992 and become a police officer. He rose in the ranks through qualifying exams and became Captain.

Compared to the many parades that are organized in New York City throughout the year, the India Day parade was a small parade by police department standards, Capt. George said. "But this year I saw a spike in numbers beyond the expectations of the (FIA) organizing committee," he told India Post a day after the parade.

"So I have made my recommendations to both the police department as well as the FIA to make more elaborate plans for next year." Not intending to make any negative observations, Capt. George suggested that getting organized was the key for future parades. "We can do with a little bit more of crowd control," he said.

"Still, it went off well this year, there were no negative incidents whatsoever. So, even by police standards, it was a great success," Capt. George added. Police estimates put the number of people that turned out for the parade at 45,000, Capt. George said.

The NYPD fanned out across Madison, Park and Fifth Avenues covering every intersection along the parade route. As an active member of the Kerala Christian community here, Capt. George is not alien to community activism. The Indian American community, he says, is a vibrant, well-to-do, and growing community and events like the India Day Parade are increasingly seeing a mix of both first and second generation Indian Americans.

"Numbers at such events will only grow and therefore call for a little more organization," he reiterated speaking in the capacity of a police captain. "The only issue with the Indian parade organizers is that they have a new committee every year.

It is difficult for the police department to give them any orientation with new members being elected every year. Perhaps it would be better if the FIA committees had a two year term." Capt. George said that Indian Americans are a highly regarded community group for the New York Police Department (NYPD).

"Our community, by virtue of its high achievements in every aspect, is regarded very highly by the police department," he said. Having assimilated into the mainstream community at a rapid pace, Indian Americans are now getting into structural assimilation where they are joining the forces and government institutions.

That apart, the police department regards this community as one that has always positively interacted with the police. "We need more people from the community to get involved with the police department through community outreach as well as through new recruits into the force.

"It is a rewarding profession and you can get assigned based on your merit and qualifications. So I invite more and more youngsters in our community to get on board," he said. Capt. George lives in Upstate New York with his wife Beena, son Kevin and daughter Kristen.