Muscat: Ambassador of India Amit Narang said “This year Indians worldwide are celebrating 75 glorious years of India’s Independence. It is customary to celebrate such a grand occasion through cultural and other performances. However, we decided to celebrate this momentous occasion through community service. This is in line with the central emphasis placed in Indian culture on the virtue of social service and in sync with the service & piety oriented spirit of the holy month of Ramadan”.
Amb Narang said “The range of service activities being organized under this ‘Festival of Service’ is aimed to highlight the positive contribution of the Indian community as peaceful and productive members of the Omani society. This is also an occasion for the Indian community to express their appreciation and solidarity with their friendly brothers and sisters in Oman for their love and hospitality”.
Amb Narang added that “This Service Festival is a country-wide initiative in which the members of the Indian community all across Oman will take part. This includes the cities of Sohar, Sur and Salalah, in addition to Muscat. The initiative will also involve the students of Indian schools in Oman who have come forward enthusiastically to contribute”.
“One of the important pillars of this activity is caring for the environment as responsible citizens. Thus, Indian community members and students will join hands to undertake beach cleaning and Wadi cleaning at 5 different locations in Oman simultaneously. A tree plantation drive involving Indian students will contribute to the Government of Oman’s drive to plant 10 million trees”.
Amb Narang lauded the efforts of the Care and Special Education (CSE), a centre for children with special needs run at the premises of the Indian School Muscat with the support of all Indian schools. He said “Inclusive education is the need of the hour and we are honored to join hands with CSE to bring focus on this important facet of education. CSE is doing commendable work with the support of all Indian schools in Oman to give quality care and support to the children with special needs. It was a pleasure indeed to interact with these special children and spend some time with them”.
Amb Narang emphasized that “The Sewa Utsav or the Festival of Service is a fitting celebration of 75 years of India’s independence as it highlights the core Indian thoughts of ‘Vasudhaiva Kutumbkam’ and ‘Sarve Bhavantu Sukhinah’ i.e. treating the world as one family and working for the welfare of others. It is also a celebration of India-Oman friendship that is time-tested and will only get strengthened in the months and years to come”.
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