Himani Sanagaram
CHICAGO: Indian Consulate in Chicago celebrated the 72nd Independence Day of India on August 15 with great enthusiasm.
The Flag hoisting ceremony in the morning was held at the Consulate premises with a good participation of the Indian-American community and friends of India. The atmosphere at the venue was charged with feelings of patriotism and pride. Over 200 people participated in the flag hoisting ceremony.
The celebration started with Consul General Ms. Neeta Bhushan hoisting the National Flag which was followed by singing of the National Anthem of India. CG read the address of the President of India. A cultural program was organized in which students of the Kalapriya Dance Academy, Dilshad Dance Academy and Bharatam Academy of Dance Arts was presented and was well received.
Patriotic songs were sung by Ishan Ahmed, Nalini Parikh and teacher of Indian culture at the Consulate Prerna Arya. CG thanked each and everyone for their presence even on a working day.
The National Day Reception was hosted at the beautiful iconic building of Chicago Cultural Centre in the evening. The Chief Guest was Congressman Danny K. Davis, 7th Congressional District. Davis presented Bhushan with the Golden Leadership Award 2018 in recognition of her exemplary leadership in the Midwestern States.
The Chicago Consulate serves the states of Illinois, Indiana, Iowa, Michigan, Minnesota, Missouri, North Dakota, South Dakota and Wisconsin.
Among the attendees were Judge Linda Davenport, Judge Rishi Agrawal, Mayor of Burr Ridge Mickey Straub, members of Diplomatic Corps, members of U.S.Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE), Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI), Office of Foreign Mission (OFM), University Professors, Indian-American community leaders, and prominent local dignitaries from Chicago and US Midwest.
Mayor Rahm Emmanuel and Governor Bruce Rauner could not attend the celebrations but sent greetings to be read to the audience. Many Consul Generals also attended the event. On this occasion, Proclamations and Messages received from these offices were also read out.
In her address, CG Neeta Bhushan welcomed the guests for being a part of the 72nd Independence Day of India celebrations. She referred to the speech of Prime Minister Narendra Modi where he mentioned about the great strides made by India and that the people of India have travelled a long journey on the world stage. With the growth rate of over 7%, India is now the fastest growing economy in the world, she said
The IMF has recently described India as, “an Elephant that has started to run”. Brand India is based on a strong foundation of talent, trade, tradition and technology. She also highlighted the scientific achievements of India and mentioned that India is one of the largest contributors to the United Nations Peacekeeping Operations and it was the first country to contribute a female formed Police Unit to the UN Mission in Liberia.
Thanking Danny Davis for his presence, Vijay Prabhakar, a community activist, said that the Congressman was a big help in getting Indian- American candidates like Raja Krishnamoorthi and Ram Villivalam into American political office as he had endorsed them.
“I’m delighted to be here… Raja has been a tremendous addition to the Indian-American community that he represents and is part of the largest democracy in the world,” Davis said.
The ceremony was followed by a cultural program where students from Natya Dance Theatre, Kalapadma Dance Academy and I-Radha School of Dance presented scintillating dance performances. Guru Ruth “Parijata” Varghese’s Kalapadma Dance Academy performed the opening dance “Vande Mataram”, followed by Natya Dance Acadmey’s “Trishakti” and other patriotic items.
The function concluded with a grand banquet attended by a full house of over 400 people to whom sumptuous Indian delicacies were served.
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