3,000 NRIs to attend Karnataka's first Pravasi Bharatiya Divas in Jan

August 29, 2016

New Delhi, Aug 29: Nearly 3,000 overseas Indians are expected to reach Bengaluru in January next year to take part in Pravasi Bharatiya Divas (PBD) — the country's flagship event to connect with the diaspora worldwide.

Pravasi

The Ministry of External Affairs partnered with the Government of Karnataka to hold the 14th PBD convention in Bengaluru from January 7 to 9, 2017. This is the first time that the event is being held in Karnataka.

External Affairs Minister Sushma Swaraj and Karnataka Chief Minister Siddaramaiah on Friday launched the website of the 14th PBD. They also released the logo of the event, after formally announcing the date and venue of the event.

Swaraj said that nearly 3,000 overseas Indians were expected to take part in the event, which would be themed on Redefining Engagement with Indian Diaspora'. She said prospective delegates could immediately start registering themselves on the PBD portal.

Prime Minister Narendra Modi will deliver the keynote address on January 8. President Pranab Mukherjee will deliver the valedictory address after conferring Pravasi Bharatiya Samman awards on overseas Indians, who have contributed in their respective fields in their host countries as well as in India, Swaraj said.

“Karnataka, our partner state for the PBD, is one of the states which sends a large number of Indians abroad every year. The state is also a hub of information technology industry,” she said, explaining why the Centre partnered with Karnataka for the PBD.

Joining Swaraj in addressing a news conference at the Ministry of External Affairs on Friday, Siddaramaiah said that four lakh Kannadigas lived outside India. He also noted that 25 million people of Indian descent lived on foreign soil. “As dispersed as they are across the world, making name, fame and fortune for themselves, our diaspora is bound by the idea of Indianness,” the chief minister said.

“Karnataka has much in store to offer to every delegate in the PBD 2017. Besides meaningful conferences covering vast subjects and creating interest for the NRI investor community, we would also be showcasing art and culture of the state,” he said.

The PBD 2017 is going to be the first such convention after the government changed the format of the event, which was previously held on January 9 every year to commemorate Mahatma Gandhi's return to India from South Africa in 1915. “It was felt that the large convention format was becoming an event without any substantive engagement with overseas Indians and was devoid of outcomes. The government therefore decided that the PBD convention would he held only once in two years,” Swaraj said.

The PBD 2016 was a low-key affair on January 9 when Swaraj interacted through videoconferencing with overseas Indians from the MEA headquarters in New Delhi.

Comments

Add new comment

  • Coastaldigest.com reserves the right to delete or block any comments.
  • Coastaldigset.com is not responsible for its readers’ comments.
  • Comments that are abusive, incendiary or irrelevant are strictly prohibited.
  • Please use a genuine email ID and provide your name to avoid reject.
News Network
March 21,2024

visa.jpg

Mangaluru: A man from Dakshina Kannada was duped of Rs 2.5 lakh after he was promised a Poland visa.

In a complaint, a resident of Belthangady, stated that the accused, Manoj, had promised a job for his son in Poland. 

Between May 22 of last year and March 19, he handed over Rs 2.2 lakh in various phases, citing different reasons.

However, since the accused failed to provide a visa or return the money, a case was registered at the Dharmasthala police station under IPC sections 417 and 420.

Comments

Add new comment

  • Coastaldigest.com reserves the right to delete or block any comments.
  • Coastaldigset.com is not responsible for its readers’ comments.
  • Comments that are abusive, incendiary or irrelevant are strictly prohibited.
  • Please use a genuine email ID and provide your name to avoid reject.
News Network
March 15,2024

BSY.jpg

Bengaluru, Mar 15: Former Karnataka chief minister and senior BJP leader B S Yediyurappa was booked under the Protection of Children from Sexual Offences (Pocso) Act on Thursday for allegedly sexually assaulting a minor at his residence in Bengaluru last month.

Yediyurappa, 81, was booked after a woman lodged a complaint saying that she visited his residence on February 2 seeking justice in a rape case against her daughter and sought that a special investigation team (SIT) be formed to look into the case.

According to the first information report (FIR), Yediyurappa allegedly took the minor to a room, closed the door and sexually assaulted her. The woman further alleged in the FIR that when she confronted Yediyurappa, he said that he was checking if the girl was raped or not. Yediyurappa later allegedly apologised and asked the woman not to reveal the matter to anyone.

The Sadashivanagar police in Bengaluru have registered a case under Section 8 (commit sexual assault) of the Pocso Act and Section 354 (a) (sexual harassment) of the Indian Penal Code (IPC).

Reacting to the allegations, the former CM said that around one-and-a-half months ago, they (the victim and her mother) had come to his house seeking help and he had taken them inside. 

“After listening to her, I called the city police commissioner B Dayananda over phone seeking to address her problem. Later, they spoke against me and I then suspected that there is some health problem with her. I sent them to city police commissioner’s office. I even gave her some money as they were in distress. I came to know that an FIR has been registered and will look into it. But this is what I get for helping someone,” he added.

Comments

Add new comment

  • Coastaldigest.com reserves the right to delete or block any comments.
  • Coastaldigset.com is not responsible for its readers’ comments.
  • Comments that are abusive, incendiary or irrelevant are strictly prohibited.
  • Please use a genuine email ID and provide your name to avoid reject.
News Network
March 27,2024

lebenon.jpg

At least seven people have been killed when Israeli warplanes bombed an emergency center in southern Lebanon near the border with the 1948 Israeli-occupied territories with air-to-surface missiles, according to Lebanese security sources.

Two sources, speaking on condition of anonymity said early on Wednesday that the strike targeted the Islamic Group’s emergency and relief center in Lebanon’s southern village of Habbariyeh.

Jamaa Islamiya, a Lebanese group closely linked to the Gaza-based Palestinian resistance movement Hamas, said in a statement that “a number” of people had been killed, and called the strike a “heinous crime.”

An official from the group said “seven rescuers” were killed in the aerial assault.

Another Jamaa Islamiya official, also requesting anonymity, said a dozen medical staff were in the emergency center at the time of the strike, adding that bodies were being pulled from the rubble.

Lebanese lawmaker Hassan Mrad said “the Israeli aggression on Habbariyeh adds to the long list of Israeli crimes.”

Israel has been launching air strikes against Lebanon since the beginning of its onslaught against the Gaza Strip in early October.

An Israeli strike knocked down part of a building in the southern Lebanese city of Nabatiyeh on February 14, killing seven members of the same family, including a child, Lebanon’s official National News Agency said. A boy initially reported missing was found alive under the rubble.

In a separate Israeli attack, a woman and her two children were killed in the village of as-Sawana in southern Lebanon.

The Israeli regime launched its devastating hostilities in the Gaza Strip on October 7 after the territory’s Hamas-led Palestinian resistance groups carried out a surprise retaliatory attack, dubbed Operation Al-Aqsa Storm, against the occupying entity.

Israel's raids have resulted in retaliatory strikes from Hezbollah in support of the Palestinian people in the Gaza Strip.

The movement has vowed to keep up its retaliatory operations as long as the Tel Aviv regime continues its onslaught on Gaza.

The Israeli campaign in Gaza has killed at least 32,414 people, most of them women and children. Another 74,787 individuals have also been wounded.

Comments

Add new comment

  • Coastaldigest.com reserves the right to delete or block any comments.
  • Coastaldigset.com is not responsible for its readers’ comments.
  • Comments that are abusive, incendiary or irrelevant are strictly prohibited.
  • Please use a genuine email ID and provide your name to avoid reject.