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WASHINGTON, December 8 - Congressman Ed Royce of California, Democratic co-chair of the House India Caucus, has predicted, as India and the US cooperate together, “the future and stability and peace of the world will be bright”.

He made this pronouncement at the Christmas celebrations held at the residence of Indian Ambassador Mrs. Nirupama Rao which has been decked for the holidays. On hand, were: officials of the Metropolitan Washington Airports Authority; Mr. Arun Kumar Singh, Deputy Chief of Mission at the Indian Embassy; Mr. Datta Padsalgikar, Minister of Community Affairs; Mr. Sudhakar Rao; special guest Reverend Father Mathai, Vicar of the Malankra Catholic Church in Landover, and spiritual director of the Ecumenical Council of Kerala Christians, who delivered the invocation address, beginning with a prayer; Dr. Sajan Mathews of the Moody Theological Seminary; Mr. Tapan Deka, Counselor at the Indian Embassy; Mr. Ranjit Elias, Counselor, Defense Technology, at the Indian Embassy, who served as emcee of the program; and Mr. Benoy Thomas, President of the National Council of Asian Indian Associations (NCAIA), together with some 200 erudite members of primarily the Indian Christian community.

Royce highlighted the accomplishments of Indian-Americans, particularly the youth. “Among all of the ethnic groups in the US, the students who have the highest percentage in their grades, and the highest percentage of advanced degrees, are Indian-Americans”, he said, to loud applause. “When we think about how well Indian-American students are doing, we know that the future is very bright here for the Indian-American community”.

Regarding the India-US strategic partnership which continues to grow in strength, the influential lawmaker noted, “Going forward, for all of us here, as we reflect on the challenges that we face, I think that we have some of the same challenges that we are going to have to meet together, cooperating together, and terrorism is on that list”.

In this regard, he extolled the resilience of Indians and the way they united after the terror attacks in Mumbai, in 2008. “We have experienced that in 9/11 here in the United States and you have experienced the equivalent to it”, Royce told the gathering. “My wife and I have had the opportunity to stay in the Taj hotel several times and I went back after that attack and I have watched that resiliency of the people of India”.

Prior to the Mumbai terror attacks, the lawmaker witnessed, first-hand, the same spirit of resilience when Gujarat was shaken by an earthquake about a decade ago. He recalled, “We were, I think, the first team in Gujarat and going back and seeing the way in which Indian-Americans assisted in rebuilding their community and seeing the way in which Indians came together during a very challenging time”.

Looking ahead, Royce, who has always been a strong advocate for bolstering trade and economic development between the world’s largest and greatest democracies, emphasized that another challenge “is bringing more prosperity and opportunity for people in India and the United States. And, I think, to the extent that we can work together, liberalize trade between India and the US, we can achieve that”!
The pride was unmistakable in his voice when he pointed out how the House India Caucus, formally called the Congressional Caucus on India and Indian-Americans, has grown since its founding in the early 1990s. “I came to Congress in 1992 and at that time, we had 12 members in the House India Caucus and today, we have over 160 members”, Royce said, to cheers from an appreciative audience.

Recalling his most recent meeting with Prime Minister Dr. Manmohan Singh, the lawmaker disclosed that the Indian leader told him, ‘there is no going back now. We have come so far together. We have built this relationship so far, there is no going back’.

“So, as we ring out the end of the year, as we think about the future, I think the future looks very bright” for the India-US partnership”, Royce said.

In extempore welcome remarks, Ambassador Rao told the gathering, “we at the Embassy are happy to be sharing this moment with our brothers and sisters from the Indian-American community and with our other American friends. Every year, we have this event at the Embassy. It is something that we look forward to, and we prepare for with a great deal of enthusiasm. And this is our way of saying ‘Thank You’ and expressing our deep appreciation to all our Christian brethren in the community who have worked shoulder-to-shoulder with all of us in achieving the goals that we have set for ourselves as a country and also the goals that we have set for ourselves in this great partnership and friendship between our two great democracies”.

Christmas, she noted, “is a time of sharing, of giving, of togetherness and of friendship among all men regardless of which creed or faith or religion to which they may belong. Christmas is especially, I believe, a time of music, of celebration and one associates it with light and brightness all over the world! And that is why we are all gathered here today to celebrate that spirit of togetherness, of giving and sharing which Christmas symbolizes and which Christmas has stood for, for all these years. And it is especially important at this time when the world is going through difficulty and there are many challenges that face all of us not only as countries, but also as people”.

Looking around a packed room, the envoy said, “I think it’s a time for us to renew our hope in life and in a future that is filled with peace and prosperity for us, for our children and for everybody all around the world. I wish each and everyone of you a Merry Christmas and a very Happy New Year”.

Dr. Sajan Mathews recounted that the message of Christ was brought to India by Saint Thomas, in the first century, some 2,000 years ago. “Christmas, therefore, is an integral part of India, a country so rich and diverse in its culture, history and religious traditions”, he said.

Lamenting that “the world is consumed with the commercialism of Christmas”, Dr. Mathews implored the gathering to focus on the significance of Christmas and the reason why Christ was born. His birth is good news and great joy for all people irrespective of caste or creed, religion or region of the world, he emphasized.

As the ambassador pointed out, “Christmas is never complete without music and without Christmas carols”, and accordingly there were three gifted musical groups on hand: an Indian-American team led by Mrs. Ayona Dutta; members of the Mizo Society; and the Southern Baptist Choir.

Ayona explained that her team sung popular carols in four different languages as follows: ‘Inneshu Rajan’ (Malayali), ‘Pita tumi Mohan’ (Bengali) ‘Oho Masih Aaya’ (Hindi), ‘Go tell it on the Mountains’ and ‘The First Noel’ (English), concluding with ‘We wish you a Merry Christmas’ and ‘Feliz Navidad’.