My tableau » India

blog：Festival of India big draw in Trinidad and Tobago

admin — Thu, 27 Aug 2009 14:34:09 +0000

A Festival of India, showcasing Indian art, craft and culture, is being held in Trinidad and Tobago for the first time and is proving a big draw for people of all ethnic groups in the island where over 40 percent of its 1.3 milllion population is of Indian origin.

Indian High Commissioner Malay Mishra said that the event, which commenced last Saturday and marks India’s 62nd Independence anniversary, will continue for a month.

“On Aug 15, India got her Independence and on Aug 31, Trinidad and Tobago got hers. We celebrate this month and in commemoration of that celebration, we are observing `Festival of India’ for the first time in Trinidad and Tobago,” he said.

The festival was inaugurated at the Mahatma Gandhi Centre for Cultural Cooperation at Caroni, Central Trinidad.

There are five elements to the festival.

blog：India to help build diaspora monument in Trinidad and Tobago

admin — Thu, 27 Aug 2009 14:24:50 +0000

The Indian government is willing to help in the installation of a monument at Trinidad and Tobago’s Nelson Island where nearly 147,000 Indians arrived between 1845 and 1917 to work on the sugar plantations, an official said.
D.N. Srivastava, joint secretary in the Ministry of Overseas Indian Affairs (MOIA), Monday told a press conference: “Whatever requests come to us for both the installation of a monument at Nelson Island, and the enhancement of the systems and facilities at the Indo-Caribbean Museum would be fully considered and supported.”

The press conference was jointly organised by the Global Organization of People of Indian Origin (GOPIO) and the Indian High Commission at Gaston Court, Chaguanas.

Nelson Island was the main entry point for over 147,000 labourers who came to this country from Uttar Pradesh and Bihar between 1845 and 1917 to work on the sugar plantations and to rescue the failing agricultural capacity.

Trinidad and Tobago also houses the Indo-Caribbean Museum, the only facility in the western world to preserve the instruments, religious texts, tools, jewellery, cooking utensils of the people who migrated from India.

145 Killed in Temple Stampede in North India

admin — Tue, 18 Aug 2009 16:23:50 +0000

At least 145 people were killed and 40 injured on Sunday when pilgrims stampeded at a mountaintop Hindu temple in northern India.(Www.hxen.com)
The stampede occurred after a railing outside the temple collapsed in India’s north state Himachal Pradesh.
Ramesh Kumar Saini, one survivor who witnessed the stampede provided more details.
“We were just 20 feet ahead from them, the place where this tragedy occurred. First, the stampede occurred above us, an old woman died, two to three were injured and some children and two to three women fell unconscious. After that, it happened down below.”
The crowd had gathered at the temple on the occasion of the 10-day religious fair that began Saturday.
Local police said the death toll could well mount further, and rescue operations at the temple were hindered by inclement weather.