Venkat Raman – 
Members of the Auckland based Muthamil Sangam has appealed for support in their efforts to raise funds for the victims of the devastating floods caused by incessant and heavy downpour last month.
The Sangam will donate proceeds of its Pongal Festival scheduled to be held on Sunday, January 31, 2016 at 6 pm at Mt Eden War Memorial Hall, located at 487 Dominion Road, Mt Eden.
NZICA Donation
Expressing condolences on behalf of New Zealand Indian Central Association (NZICA), its General Secretary Prakash Biradar announced a donation of $2000 to Muthamil Sangam and that a cheque will be handed over at the Pongal Festival.
He said that he read about the torrential rains in Tamil Nadu when he was in India on holiday last month.
“On behalf of NZICA, I send our sympathy to the people of Tamil Nadu and our condolences to the families that have lost their dear ones in the floods. It was heart-rending to read in Indian newspapers and in Indian Newslink of the colossal loss caused by the disaster. As the oldest apex body of Indians in New Zealand, NZICA proposes to pay $2000 towards relief works,” he said.
GOPIO silent
While NZICA has expressed its sympathy and offered financial help, no other association seemed to have cared about the situation in Tamil Nadu. Some members of Tamil associations said that the Global Organisation of People of Indian Origin (GOPIO) has several chapters in Auckland and other cities in New Zealand and yet, none of them showed their solidarity or sympathy.
Indian Newslink did not wish to comment.
Muthamil Sangam Vice-President Sridhar Nagappan said that his Association will distribute the collected funds through ‘Agaram Foundation,’ one of the most credible charities in Tamil Nadu.
“Agaram Foundation is doing immense community work for the needy and downtrodden people. The Board of Trustees of the Foundation are all eminent persons in various fields among who are a retired Madras High Court Judge, doctors, accountants and financial advisors,” he said.
For details, please visit www.agaram.in
Pongal Festival
Mr Nagappan said that even as Tamilians celebrate Pongal, which is their harvest festival, they will remember their families and friends in Tamil Nadu and the sufferings that they are undergoing as an aftermath of the heavy rains followed by the deluge.
“Several non-profit organisations around the world are responding to appeals for help. They have been providing for the immediate needs of flood victims. The anxiety is to ensure that the suffering people return to their normal life as soon as possible,” he said.
According to him, the Pongal Festival, scheduled to begin at 6 pm, will include music, dance, drama, a video clipping of the recent floods in Tamil Nadu by Agaram Foundation and dinner.
Tickets for the event, priced at $15 (per person) and $10 for children between four and ten years of age (infants free entry) can be obtained from the members of the Executive Committee of Muthamil Sangam Inc. Further details can be obtained from Prem Kandasamy on 027-3404012 or Sridhar Nagappan on 021-3404012.
Editor’s Note: A related story appears under Homelink.
