Latest news with #DawoodiBohra
India.com
6 days ago
- Politics
- India.com
Modi Is The Moment: UK's Indian Diaspora Sees PM As Bridge To Global Power
London: London buzzed with anticipation as members of the Indian diaspora gathered to welcome Prime Minister Narendra Modi. Enthusiasm met him at every turn. They spoke with warmth. Gehna Gautam recalled the moment. 'I just met the PM. He walked past us. It was a surreal moment. I got to shake his hand. He is so dynamic. It was an amazing experience. The enthusiasm and energy of the people around here is on another level,' she said. Sanjay shared a similar excitement. 'I am very happy to meet PM Modi. He has come here for a very important job. We wish him and Bharat good luck. He is doing a great job,' he said. Bhavya called it unforgettable. 'The prime minister shook my hand and gave me 'Ashirwad' (blessing). It was the best feeling ever,' she said. Shivani felt truly blessed, 'We shook hands twice and he also blessed me on my head. It is my pleasure to meet him. We are very blessed to have him over here. We are really very happy today.' From the Dawoodi Bohra community, voices expressed pride too. 'As Dawoodi Bohras, we are very proud of the relationship that the prime minister has with our community. He has been a friend of our community for many years. And as a proud Dawoodi Bohra and as a British citizen, we welcome him to the United Kingdom and look forward to meeting him.' Another Bohra added, 'I am very excited. This is my first time personally meeting PM Modi. He is a great friend to the Dawoodi Bohra community. It will always be a pleasure to meet him. We welcome him and we hope that one day he will visit us at our mosque in the UK as well.' Preena, a diaspora leader, said, 'I am so excited to see PM Modi. My family and I are huge fans of PM Modi. He has done so much for India's progress. He made India a Vishwaguru. He made India very powerful on the world stage.' Modi landed in London for a two-day visit beginning Wednesday. His agenda includes talks toward a Free Trade Agreement. In a departure statement, he said that India and the United Kingdom share a Comprehensive Strategic Partnership. He listed the scope – trade, investment, technology, innovation, defence, education, research, sustainability, health and people-to-people ties. Modi will meet UK Prime Minister Keir Starmer and also pay respects to King Charles III. The aim is to spur economic growth, create jobs and raise trade to USD 120 billion by 2030. This marks Modi's fourth voyage to the United Kingdom since 2015. His previous visits came in 2015, 2018 and 2021 for COP26 in Glasgow. He and Starmer met twice recently at the G20 in Rio and the G7 in Kananaskis. India-UK ties saw an upgrade in 2021 when they adopted Comprehensive Strategic Partnership status. High-level visits followed. Both nations signaled firm commitments to deepen cooperation. Next on Modi's journey is Maldives.
Hindustan Times
6 days ago
- Business
- Hindustan Times
PM Modi arrives in London, key India-UK trade deal on agenda
Prime Minister Narendra Modi arrived in London on Thursday for two-day visit to the United Kingdom. Announcing his arrival, PM Modi says the visit would advance the economic partnership between India and the UK. PM Modi has arrived in London.(X/@narendramodi) "The focus will be on furthering prosperity, growth and boosting job creation for our people. A strong India-UK friendship is essential for global progress," a part of his tweet read. What's on agenda? The formal signing of a free trade agreement (FTA) between India and the UK would be the key highlight of PM Modi's visit. He will hold a meeting with UK Prime Minister Keir Starmer and discuss the bilateral ties between the two countries. The agreement was signed on May 6 and will reportedly be signed by the commerce ministers of India and UK, Piyush Goyal and Jonathan Reynolds, respectively. The FTA will help India massively in terms of tariff, with 99 per cent Indian exports likely to benefit from tariff. As part of the trade deal, it will also be easier for British firms to export whisky, cars and other products to India. While in the UK, PM Modi will be hosted by Starmer at Chequers, the British PM's residence located 50 km northwest of London, people familiar with the matter earlier said. The Prime Minister's visit aims at both India and the UK reviewing the progress of the Comprehensive Strategic Partnership (CSP). Trade and economy, technology, defence, climate, health and education will be some of the focus areas. Besides, PM Modi will also meet King Charles III, before heading to the Maldives for his visit on July 25-26. Interaction with Indian community Upon his arrival in London, PM Modi interacted with some members of the Indian community there, who had been waiting for him. The Indian diaspora expressed joy upon meeting the Prime Minister, and wished him well for the visit. "I just met the PM. He walked past us. It was a surreal moment. I got to shake my hand. He is so dynamic... It was an amazing experience," Gehna Gautam, an Indian diaspora member was quoted as saying by news agency ANI. "The Prime Minister shook my hand and gave me 'Ashirwad'. It was the best feeling ever...," said Bhavya, another member. Some members of the Dawoodi Bohra community also seemed excited to meet the PM. As Dawoodi Bohras, we are very proud of the relationship that the Prime Minister has with our community. He's been a friend of our community for many years. And as a proud Dawoodi Bohra and as a British citizen, we welcome him to the UK and look forward to meeting him..." a member said. Catherine West, UK Foreign Office Minister in charge of the Indo-Pacific, received PM Modi at the London airport. Indian High Commissioner to the UK Vikram Doraiswami and British High Commissioner to New Delhi Lindy Cameron accompanied her, reported news agency PTI.
The Hindu
11-07-2025
- Politics
- The Hindu
Stalin hosts Dawoodi Bohra leaders at his residence; ₹1 crore handed over to CMPRF
Tamil Nadu Chief Minister M.K. Stalin on Friday hosted the leaders of the Dawoodi Bohra community at his residence. On the occasion, they contributed ₹1 crore to the Chief Minister's Public Relief Fund (CMPRF). The 53rd leader of Dawoodi Bohra community Syedna Mufaddal Saifuddin and senior representatives called on the Chief Minister in his camp office in Chennai and thanked him for the State government's support. Chennai hosted the annual Ashara Mubaraka congregations of the Dawoodi Bohra community. In a social media post, Mr. Stalin said: 'Deeply moved by the gracious gesture of gratitude from the @Dawoodi_Bohras. It was a privilege to host them at my residence and I sincerely appreciate their generous contribution of ₹1 crore to the #CMPRF.'
The Hindu
11-07-2025
- Politics
- The Hindu
Stalin pays tributes to freedom fighter Veeran Azhagumuthu Kone on birth anniversary
Tamil Nadu Chief Minister M.K. Stalin paid floral tributes to the statue of freedom fighter Veeran Azhagumuthu Kone on the occasion of his birth anniversary at a function near the Egmore railway station in Chennai on Friday. Mr. Stalin also hailed the freedom fighter in a social media post. Ministers S. Regupathy, K.R. Periakaruppan, M.P. Saminathan, R.S. Rajakannappan, Ma. Subramanian, and P.K. Sekarbabu; Chennai Mayor R. Priya; legislators Thayagam Kavi, A. Vetriazhagan, Joseph Samuel, A.M.V. Prabhakara Raja, and senior officials also paid their tributes to the freedom fighter. Meanwhile, the 53rd leader of Dawoodi Bohra community, Syedna Mufaddal Saifuddin, and senior representatives called on the Chief Minister at his camp office in Chennai and thanked him for the State government's support in hosting the community's annual Ashara Mubaraka congregation. Separately, in a social media post, Mr. Stalin said it was the birth centenary of Thavathiru Kundrakudi Adigal. Recalling that Kundrakudi Adigal undertook the campaign for chanting in Tamil during worship, Mr. Stalin also pointed out that he had stood by the side of the late leader 'Periyar' E.V. Ramasamy and former Chief Ministers C.N. Annadurai and M. Karunanidhi.
The Hindu
09-07-2025
- General
- The Hindu
Dawoodi Bohra community's congregation efforts to remain inclusive to all
Relief is what Tasnim Lodghar describes when she didn't have to worry about the well being or the mental load of her 17-year-old child with cerebral palsy during the Ashara Mubaraka congregation, which was held in Chennai this year. 'It would require a lot of planning for the 10 days from co-ordinating the auto and looking after my son throughout the sermon. The first thought I had when I wanted to attend was how I would manage. The stress from planning alone was huge. But this time it had been organised with the specially-abled children in mind which helped me a lot. It helped me be present at the congregation,' said Tasnim Lodghar. Held at the start of the Islamic month of Muharram, Ashara Mubaraka is an occasion marked by sermons and prayers in remembrance of Prophet Muhammed, his grandson Imam Husain, and his companions. This year, the congregation — led by Syedna Mufaddal Saifuddin, the leader of the global Dawoodi Bohra community — returned to Chennai after 50 years, drawing tens of thousands of attendees from around the world to mark the occasion. This year, the congregation saw 43,000 people, with over 120 children with disabilities participating. The brain child of the health wing of the Dawoodi Bohra community, the organisers paid extra focus to integrate the persons with disabilities - from providing a calming room to employing special educators and training volunteers. 'This time was different as we focused on specially-abled children and adults. We have created separate zones for them to enhance their experience,' said Hasan Kapi, member of the Dawoodi Bohra community. In the congregation hall, three zones were marked for persons with disability. One zone was for hearing impaired people, where a sign language interpreter translated the entire sermon to them. The other two zones accommodate people with multi disorders such as autism, down syndrome, cerebral palsy, polio-affected child, visually-impaired and people with muscular dystrophies. There were seven special educators and 11 volunteers present to help them out. Explaining the process of preparation Nafisa Manaf, a Chennai-based special educator who is part of the team said, 'The preparation for the event began 15 days before it began on July 27. When the parents registered we looked into the severity of the disability in children. We communicated about the kind of food the child eats, their independence in using a toilet, crowd management. We worked with parents to know more about their needs.' When the child affected with autism spectrum disorder gets agitated or overstimulated the special educators take note and remove them from the area to calm them down. 'We take care of them and engage them to listen to the sermon. When they have periods of hyperactivity, we remove them from the zone and calm them in a separate calming room. There the children are engaged with sensory toys or some might want to run around to expend the energy. Once done, we bring them back to the hall,' she added. The children have to sit through a sermon of four hours. As many as 120 children were identified as disabled but only 70 children were in the zones as they required more assistance. The efforts paid off as Nafisa points out that the children adapted quickly and understood the routine. 'The children were able to sit throughout the sermon. Many children with disabilities are sensitive to the food but by day three they were able to eat from the tal (community plate) with their families and others around them with no hassle,' she added.
