Ontario Premier Honourable Dalton McGuinty was the Chief Guest on the occasion of the release of the report of the proceedings of the Pravasi Bharatiya Divas Canada (PBDCanada2011) at a function held at Atlantis Pavilion in downtown Toronto on Wednesday September 21.
Satish Thakkar, President, Indo-Canada Chamber of Commerce (ICCC) noted that “Premier McGuinty has participated at previous ICCC engagements, including the inaugural dinner for convention in June. We are honoured that in the midst of the election campaign that he joined us for this landmark occasion, the release of the report.”
Thakkar stated that “the presence of over 100 senior civil servants from the prestigious Indian Administrative Service India made the event a memorable one. The ICCC is proud of its role as a bridge-builder.”
The report is the first of its kind amongst the overseas PBDs. “We hope this document assists future PBD venues,” Thakkar said. He added that the remarkable support of the many sponsors made this initiative a most worthy one. In particular, he emphasised, “I would like to convey our profound gratitude to State Bank of India (Canada) for being the presenting sponsor.”
In his remarks, Ontario Premier Dalton McGuinty noted that his government had deepened its engagement with India through its two missions in 2007 and 2009 and indeed would seek to further these ties in the future by doubling the number of such missions, including to strategic countries like India. He complimented the ICCC on its role in building key and important linkages.
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| Premier of Ontario Hon. Dalton McGuinty |
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ICCC President Satish Thakkar |
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Consul General Hon. Preeti Saran |
Speaking on the occasion Preeti Saran, Consul General of the Consulate General of India in Toronto, said the Toronto convention of and for the Indian Diaspora was the flagship event in the Year of India in Canada.
She emphasised that the Government of India would give due recognition to recommendations made in the PBDCanada2011 report whilst formulating policies to involve the Indian Diaspora with India more comprehensively.
State Bank of India (Canada) was the presenter of the convention. Sunil Tandon, President & CEO of the bank, said that as a sponsor, the bank was delighted with the outcome of the convention.
Approximately 300 guests joined the event including more than 100 IAS officers from India who were felicitated at the event. The officers were in Canada to participate in a study tour and training program of the Institute of Public Administration of Canada (IPAC) and School of Public Policy and Governance (SPPG), University of Toronto.
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