Multicultural News Australia - Vol 1 Issue 1 August, 2021

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Website: mcna.org.au Email: info@mcna.org.au

Vol 1, Issue 1; Aug 7, 2021

Mela tiranjana da organised in Perth -Page 16

MONTHLY PUBLICATION

Shishir Sangeet concert held in Brisbane -Page 21

AMBASSADOR MANPREET VOHRA BREAKS ICE WITH INDIAN COMMUNITY MEMBERS ACCROSS QUEENSLAND

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he newly appointed Indian High Commissioner to Australia His Excellency Manpreet Vohra along with his wife Mrs Naseem Vohra met with prominent members of the Indian community in Queensland on July 18. The Global Organisation of People

of Indian Origin (GOPIO) Gold Coast chapter hosted a community lunch meeting with the new High Commissioner of India to Australia and his wife. The Honorary Consul of India Queensland, Mrs Archana Singh also graced the occasion as a chief guest. Despite the

event being limited in capacity due to Covid restrictions, it was attended by many of Gold Coast's prominent business, cultural and community leaders and other representatives of the Indian diaspora.

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Publisher Dr. Ram Mohan Editor Harpreet Bhagrath Associate Editor Deepika Banerjee Contributors Sameer Bhalla Mohita Sexena Sharon Bath Website Design & Updates Cosmos Media

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AMBASSADOR MANPREET VOHRA BREAKS ICE WITH INDIAN COMMUNITY MEMBERS ACCROSS QUEENSLAND

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r Vohra also met Indian community members on his maiden visit to Brisbane on the same day as part of a social meet organised by the Federation of Indian Communities of Queensland (FICQ) in association with the High Commission of India in Canberra.

Mr Vohra, the erstwhile Ambassador of India to Mexico, was appointed as the High Commissioner of India to Australia on March 1st this year.

The senior diplomat who is a 1988 batch Indian Foreign service officer took up the baton from the previous High Commissioner Mr Gitesh Sarma at a time when the strategic partnership between India and Australia is at a peak point with both countries working closely on all fronts, especially in fortifying the Indo-Pacific region against Chinese incursion.

Recently the High Commissioner

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also had a talk with Vice Chancellor Iain Martin of Deakin University via a video conference call regarding the return of Indian students enrolled at the university who are still stuck in India and commencing their on-campus classes as soon as possible. In June, New South Wales and South Australia had declared their intention to bring back overseas students in a staggered manner. Since then the hope that other states too would take a page from the aforementioned states’ book has been mounting.

The Indian High Commission has emphasized that concerted efforts are being made to facilitate the return of Indian students to the Australian campuses and they are leaving no stone unturned in persuading the authorities concerned to speed up the process. The data gathered from the official state records revealed that more than 100,000 international

students are continuing with their classes remotely and the Indians account for a substantial proportion of such students.

A Deakin University representative has stated that Ambassador Vohra sought transparency regarding the exact date when students could expect to return and what protocol and precautions they needed to follow. It was also expressly stated that the University values the strong and close ties between India and Australia and is constantly working towards prompt and safe return of all the international students albeit gradually.

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INDIA TECHNOLOGY HUB SUMMIT A report by Mrs. Sheba Nandkeolyar, Former National Chair, Australia India Business Council and Founder and CEO, Multi Connexions Dr Ashutosh Misra, Editor-in-Chief, India News and CEO, Institute for Australia India Engagement 7 July 2021, Quest Hotel, Springfield, Queensland: The high-impact India Technology Hub Summit was conducted successfully on 7 July 2021 at the Quest Hotel at Springfield Central by the Springfield City Group and Australia India Business Council (AIBC) with wide participation of stakeholders from Australia and India connecting the Indian tech companies with the Springfield City Group and AIBC. Key stakeholders included Tech Mahindra, TATA Consulting Services (TCS), WIPRO, Hindustan Computers Limited (HCL), Infosys, and NSDL eGovernance and 3 Dot Digital among others. The Summit discussed a range of opportunities and possibilities for Greater Springfield and build the tech and innovation hub. Export Council of Australia, Federation of Indian Chambers of Commerce and Industry (FICCI), Trade and Investment Queensland (TIQ), Australian Trade and Investment Commission (Austrade), Business Council of Australia shared their insights on the scope of international business and investments between Australia and India.

His Excellency Manpreet Vohra, the Indian High Commissioner to Australia underlined the growing Australia-India trade and investment relationship.

India News Australia participated as the media partner and was represented by its Chairman and Publisher Ram Mohan and Ashutosh Misra, along with Agastya Yeturi, India News cinematographer. The Summit was moderated by Jim Varghese AM, National Chair, AIBC Australia India Business Council.

Launching the Summit, the Springfield City Group Chairman Maha Sinnathamby rightly stated, “What binds us together is what we are all about today – and what binds us today will be the increasing trade opportunities and cultural sharing between Australia and India. Information and technology is one form of trade that will certainly fast track this relationship.”

Senator Paul Scarr emphasised that this burgeoning relationship was limitless including the global talent visa system and advocacy for India as the way forward. Federal MP for Oxley, Queensland Milton Dick strongly urged more action, more content, more dialogue between businesses to fast track this bilateral relationship, which was later seconded by HE Manpreet Vohra.

Charis Mullen State MP for Jordan, Queensland highlighted how locations such as Springfield can play a major role in facilitating the bilateral business and investment relationship. Ipswich Mayor Teresa Harding reminded the delegates of the unique opportunities that Springfield and Ipswich offer for investors.

Former Secretary, Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade and current Chancellor, University of Queensland Peter Varghese AO illuminated the importance of science and technology being at the forefront of this bilateral relationship, as highlighted in his www.mcna.org

India Economic Strategy to 2035.

India’s former Secretary (East) Ambassador Anil Wadhwa, the author of Australia Economic Strategy, drew attention to how India was simplifying the business environment for prospective investors. The Australia Economic Strategy has underlined joint opportunities, especially in the areas of cyber security, data analysis, cloud and fintech. He called for Australian and Indian policymakers to consider setting up a joint innovation fund.

HE Manpreet Vohra in his brief remark spoke about more business meetings and engagements to facilitate this bilateral relationship and flagged the possibility of a free trade agreement and discussions commencing shortly.

Ross Buchanan from the Trade and Investment Queensland (TIQ) very effectively articulated the benefits of setting up businesses in Queensland and in Springfield as well as the various incentives that the Queensland Government had in place for prospective businesses and investors.

In addition, C. P. Gurnani, CEO and Managing Director, Tech Mahindra and Girish Ramchandradas, President, Asia Pacific, Tata Consultancy Services, admired the visionary outlook that Indian IT companies bring to the table and noted their contribution to economies across the world. Jim Varghese shared the views and flagged that Australia can certainly play a pivotal role in setting up operations here and expanding globally.

In the session on Industry perspectives, Ted Burger, Senior Advisor Global Engagement, BCS laid emphasis on the need for changing mindsets of Australians about doing business with India – and reiterated that with the rise of Asia especially in IT, India remained central and well positioned in this relationship.

Dianne Tipping, Chair, ECA and Dilip Chenoy, Secretary General, FICCI, both highlighted the immense trade opportunities between the two sides, especially the opportunities for manufacturing in India, Smart Cities, and Logistics. “COVID has changed everything, and most businesses have gone digital, which puts IT at the heart of any industry,” said Dilip Chenoy.

Jim Varghese, added that it was heartening that Austrade was addressing perceptions and driving an understanding of contemporary India in Australia as well as driving business and investment opportunities that Indian businesses have in Australia.

Deputy Chair of Springfield Bob Sharpless very eloquently presented to the audience the value proposition that Springfield offered especially to IT companies from India and Australia, and shared that Springfield was aiming to achieve a zero-net energy target by 2038 (produce as much energy it consumed). Ashok Mysore, IT Chapter Chair, AIBC, while moderating the session on strategies, highlighted the

importance of technology and Indian companies’ contribution to the Australian and globally economy and growth.

This was followed by the last session covering future goals for Australian and Indian companies for growth featuring Vikram Singh, Country head, TCS; Sarah Adam-Gedge, Country Head, Wipro; Michael Horton, Executive Vice President, HCL; Andrew Growth, Senior Vice President and CEO, Australia and New Zealand and Industry head, Financial Services Infosys, Asia Pacific; and Jeff Ferdinand, Senior Vice President and Country Tech Mahindra. The

session emphasised on the need for government and academic collaboration and the role of New Colombo Plan program in nurturing future leaders in the field. The session made a significant point about the lack of talent in Australia in IT and why growing business and trade collaboration in the sector is needed to address that gap.

In the post Summit interview with Ashutosh Misra, Editor in Chief, India News, Jim Varghese, Senator Paul Scarr and Bhanu Sud, COO, 3 Dot Digital agreed that the Summit was indeed a watershed in the history of Australia-India business and

trade engagements which should encourage not only the tech giants but also small and medium business enterprises in both countries, through memorandums of understanding.

They were in agreement that from here on Australia and India ties will grow deeper and more meaningful.

The Summit concluded with the closing remarks from the moderator Jim Varghese summarising the key points of the Summit, followed by the vote of thanks from Nik Senapati, President, AIBC Queensland Chapter.

HE Manpreet Vohra presenting his remaks

Dr Maha Sinnathamby delivering his remarks. Also in the picture Milton Dick Federal MP and Charis Mullen State MP for Jordan

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Mr Bob Sharpless, Deputy Chairman Springfield City Group and Dr Maha Sinnathamby

Mr Jim Varghese, National Chair, AIBC moderating the Summit

Dr Nik Senapati, President AIBC Queensland Chapter and Dr Ashutosh Misra, E-I-C India News and CEO, IAIE

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Dr Maha Sinnathamby and Senator Paul Scarr

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INDO-PACIFIC BUSINESS SUMMIT

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ndo-Pacific reflects the reality of globalisation, the emergence of multipolarity and the benefits of rebalancing," said Dr S Jaishankar, Hon'ble External Affairs Minister, Govt of India while inaugurating the 1st edition of the Indo Pacific Business Summit on July 6 over CII HIVE virtual platform.

Hon. Minister mentioned about

PM Modi's call for adopting a one earth, one health approach in the recent G7 summit and stressed on the need for meaningful partnerships, sharing of advanced technology, and collaboration in vaccine and pharmaceuticals production.

He also highlighted that India is coming out of the 2nd wave and will witness a strong economic

recovery. It will be a more dynamic and friendlier business destination. He said that India will continue to be an engine of growth for the global economy.

H.E Mr Don Graves, Deputy Secretary of Commerce, U.S. Department of Commerce; H.E Mr Franck Riester, Minister Delegate for Foreign Trade and Economic Attractiveness,

France; H.E. Mr Nguyen Quoc Dzung, Vice Minister, Ministry of Foreign Affairs, Vietnam; H.E. Mr Abdulla Shahid, Minister for Foreign Affairs, Maldives; The Honourable Alan GANOO, Minister of Land Transport and Light Rail, Minister of Foreign Affairs, Regional Integration and International Trade, Mauritius; Senator the Hon Marise Payne,

Foreign Minister and Minister for Women, Australia; Mr Sanjiv Bajaj, President Designate, CII and Chairman and Managing Director, Bajaj Finserve Limited and Mr Chandrajit Banerjee, Director General, CII also spoke at the inaugural session.

CITIZENSHIP CEREMONY HELD

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ulticultural Australia held the Citizenship Ceremony at Brisbane City Hall on July 14 where over 500 new Australians were

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welcomed. ​ Brisbane City Council conducts citizenship ceremonies throughout the year. The Department of Home Affairs allocate new

citizens to a ceremony and then invitations are distributed by Brisbane City Council, via mail and email.

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MQSN HOLDS COMMUNITY LEADERS MEETING

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arious multicultural and linguistically diverse community leaders came together under the Multicultural Queensland Social Network Group (MQSN) on Sunday, 18 July at the Multicultural Hub at Annerley.

The objectives of the meeting were for the various members to share issues affecting the culturally and linguistically diverse communities; encourage members to participate in events and activities with the wider community; and promote equity, respect, fairness, and inclusiveness among wider communities.

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ANNUAL ASHU BABA MEMORIAL TABLA SCHOOL CONCERT

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4th Annual Ashu Babu Memorial Tabla School Concert was organised on July 24 at the Queensland Multicultural Centre, Kangaroo Point, Brisbane, where the Brisbane students of the Pt. Ashutosh Bhattacharya Baj of Benares Gharana performed in honour of their esteemed Guru-ji on the occasion of Guru Purnima.

The concert featured Darshil

Shah on bansuri and Shen Flindell on tabla solo; Dr Mansey Kinarivala Gandhi and Rugved Pawar with the vocals; students of Ashu Babu Memorial Tabla School with tabla lehras; and Nikhil Deo and Raghunath Pawar wdre on harmonium.

The event was supported by Queensland Sangeet Mela Association, Brisbane Indian Times and Australian Indian Radio.

Opening semi-classical bhajan by Dr Mansey Kinarivala Gandhi, with Shainthra Birabaharan on tabla

Chief Guest Mr Umesh Chandra of Brisbane Indian Times

Varun Lal with guru Shen Flindell

Dr Thakur Manas Singh and Matthew Ross

Nikhil Deo gave stable accompaniment to all the tabla performances

Vocal by Rugved Pawar, with Guhanesh Ganesh on tabla

Keshav Siraparapu and Guhanesh Ganesh hit Sam together

Sreyas Jawajiwar and Vivaan Shah

Hiyan Mehta

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Aarav Vaidya

Rayansh Shah

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MENTAL HEALTH WELLBEING SESSION ORGANISED IN BRISBANE A n informative and successful session was presented

by Federation of Indian communities of Queensland (FICQ) on 25 July, including the presentation on Mental Health Wellbeing by Ms Pushpa Vaghela; Develop Leadership Qualities

by Ms Uma Panch from Sydney; and Challenges in Life by Ms Pravinita Singh Pillay.

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WOMEN’S DAY ORGANISED IN ANNERLEY

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alayalee Association of Queensland organised the Women's Day event on June 19 in Annerley in Brisbane, where experts from various fields shared their knowledge and expertise, making the session informative and useful for the physical,

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mental and emotional well being of the participants.

Dr Iti Agrawal, psychiatrist at Royal Brisbane and Women's Hospital spoke on mental and emotional wellness. Latha Vikraman, qualified medical social worker spoke on domestic violence.

Another key speaker at the event was Dr Preetha Thomas, lecturer, School of Public Health, Faculty of Medicine, University of Queensland. Suma, trained yoga practitioner, took the participants on a yoga session.

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ROTARY CLUB BRISBANE ELECTS NEW PRESIDENT

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otary Club if Brisbane elected their new president for 2021-2022 Ms Subhashni Singh, along with the new board of directors, on July 26 in Brisbane.

Past President Mrs Soko Niko was thanked profusely for leading the Rotary Club successfully in his year.

Rotarian of the Year was awarded to Mr Jitendra Prasad. Rotary Hero of the Year went to Mrs Anisha Ranchod.

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August 15 Happy Independence Day

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MELA TIRANJANA DA C

ORGANISED IN PERTH

annington Punjabi Club, a cultural organisation that organises Indian cultural events in Australia, held Mela Tiranjana Da at Bentley in Perth, Western Australia, on 26 June.

In this event, various dance competitions, bhangra, gidda and awards ceremony took place.

This event highlighted Panjabi cultural in various ways.

It is believed that Mela tiranjana da is celebrated to welcome monsoon in India. According to Indian rituals, women get together in their traditional attires, enjoy Tiranjana by riding a swing hung on a tree while singing folk songs along with gidda (folk dance of Panjabi women). Also they all come up with handmade sweets and desserts for each other.

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INDIAN YOUTH FESTIVAL CHARMS AUDIENCE

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ndian Youth Festival, where various Punjabi artists performed their talented dance styles, was held on 25 July at Roma Street Parklands in Brisbane.

Rich Virsa Bhangra Academy's dancers bagged the first positions in bhangra as well as giddha. Tulja Dance Academy got the 1st Runner Up position.

The chief guest was Senator Hon. Amanda Stoker, Assistant Minister to the AttorneyGeneral, Assistant Minister for Women, Assistant Minister for Industrial Relations.

Besides giddha and bhangra, to charm and entertain the audience were food stalls and stalls with Punjabi works of art depicting the culture of Punjab.

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SHISHIR SANGEET

CONCERT HELD IN BRISBANE

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ueensland Sangeet Mela Association (QSMA) continued their series of mini Sangeet Melas with their event "Shishir Sangeet", an evening of beautiful Hindustani classical music featuring vocal, surbahar and sitar, at Finnish Hall on 26 June to mark the transition to winter. In a time of rapid changes and event cancellations, live music from top local artists was enjoyed by those present.

The evening opened with the delightful voice of Dr Mansey Kinarivala Gandhi, accompanied

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on tabla by Shen Flindell and on harmonium by Joseph Nand.

Mansey presented raga abhogi in jhaptaal (10 matras) and teentaal (16 matras), followed by a tarana and raga mala.

After the interval, Dr Indranil Chatterjee treated the audience to Raga Shree, firstly in chautaal (12 matras) on surbahar, whose deep resonant tones are a rare treat to hear, and then in ara-chautaal (14 matras) on the sitar, with very exciting rapid taans and tihais all presented with aplomb. Tabla accompanist

Shen Flindell interspersed the performance with dynamic solos to good audience response.

It was wonderful to see a large and diverse audience with many people of all backgrounds deeply absorbed in the performances.

QSMA team saw Shen (organiser), Umesh (association president, catering sponsor), Sanjeev, Jesinthan, and Sharujan come together to present this event.

Photos credit: Brian Sullivan

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NATIONAL ARTBORETUM CANBERRA GETS FRESH TREE INSTALLMENT T he Singapore High Commission in Canberra was the diplomatic partner for the 2021 Warm Trees installment at the National Arboretum Canberra on July 2.

Hundreds of volunteers from across Australia have contributed knitted craft featuring Singapore, which was displayed throughout the Arboretum for the month of July.

An exhibition on Singapore's efforts to create a City in Nature, the close and long-standing defence relationship shared between Singapore and Australia, and Singapore Airlines' new iconic batik motif, was also on display at the Arboretum.

Speaker of the ACT Legislative Assembly, Ms Joy Burch MLA, and High Commissioner Kwok Fook Seng launched the exhibition.

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BUDDIST LENT CEREMONY

ORGANISED IN THAI TEMPLE BRISBANE Continued from Page 1 Asalha Puja is a Theravada Buddhist festival which typically takes place in July, on the full moon of the eighth lunar month.

This day marks the first public sermon given by Buddha, which took place at Deer Park in Banaras, India. In this initial sermon, Buddha presented the Four Noble Truths to five ascetics. While the ascetics believed in self-mortification, he taught that the cessation of desire was the key to enlightenment. Upon hearing this message, the five men reached enlightenment and became the first Buddhist priests

or Sangha.

The day also marks the beginning of Vassa, the Buddhist lent period also known as the Rains Retreat. During Vassa (Rains Retreat), monks remain inside monasteries and temple grounds, devoting their time to intensive meditation and study.

Lay people support the monastic sangha by bringing food, candles and other offerings to temples.

Lay people also often observe Vassa by giving up something, such as smoking or eating meat.

For this reason, westerners sometimes call Vassa the "Buddhist Lent."

India News Chairman Dr Ram Mohan and Ms. Raynuha Sinnathamby is the Managing Director of Springfield Land Corporation

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REPUBLIC OF KIRIBATI 42nd INDEPENDENCE DAY CELEBRATED

eople of the Republic of Kiribati celebrated their 42nd Independence Day on July 12.

Australia and Kiribati enjoy a rich, diverse and enduring partnership. This special relationship is defined by common interests, connected communities and

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mutual respect. It is driven by their shared vision for a safe, secure and prosperous Pacific.

This partnership has strengthened over the past year, as both the nations have worked to address common challenges, particularly in response to the impacts of COVID-19. Australia

has assisted the Pacific nation through the pandemic, including through provision of vaccines and medical supplies and help to repatriate I-Kiribati seafarers.

Australia's development cooperation continues to improve economic prospects, gender equality, health, education, and

disability inclusion for the people of Kiribati. With Australia’s support, over 16,000 children have benefited from improved schools and teaching, over 1,000 students have graduated from the Kiribati Institute of Technology, and over 1,100 I-Kiribati workers have participated in Australia’s

labour mobility schemes.

The recent handover of a Guardian-class Patrol Boat from Australia to Kiribati also deepens their maritime security partnership.

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NELSON MANDELA DAY

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elson Mandela Day was celebrated on July 18, in tribute to the extraordinary global advocate for equality, peace, racial harmony and justice.​ This year's theme, One Hand

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Can Feed Another, recognised the power of collaboration and friendship across culturally diverse communities, and stands as a call to action to tackle food insecurity in South Africa by working together. ​

Multicultural Australia’s CEO Christine Castley and staff attended the African Professionals of Australia - Queensland's 2021 Mandela Celebration at Queensland Parliament. ​ Christine Castley spoke at the

event of the pride in celebrating and promoting the strength, cultural richness and positive contributions the diverse multicultural communities bring to Queensland.

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