President’s Message
Dear Fellow Rotarians.
Hope you enjoyed your Diwali break. Once again, I wish you and your dear ones, a Very Happy Samvat New Year 2076!!!
The Diwali Party on October 23rd was extremely well organised in every aspect. Thanks to Rtn. Ashok Jatia and the team for their efforts and taking care of minute details – we had a fabulous evening.
I am delighted to see synergies between our various committees being used to leverage strengths. At the beginning of the Rotary Year, I had made mention of and laid emphasis on the need to synergise our efforts in our Club projects and committees. The Water Resources Committee and the Animal Welfare Committee put together their efforts and installed six Jal Jeevan Safe Drinking Water units at the Bombay SPCA Animal Hospital. It was also interesting to learn how children and elderly enrich each other’s lives, when Ananda Yaan and Bhavishya Yaan came together and elders shared their knowledge and experience with young ones.
For those joining the upcoming fellowship trip to Uzbekistan, some historical facts may be of interest:
Relations between Uzbekistan and India have their roots deep in history. There are frequent references to Kamboja in Sanskrit and Pali literature, stated to include parts of present-day Uzbekistan. The Sakas are said to have participated in Mahabharat on the side of Kauravas. The ancient trade route Uttarpath passed through Uzbekistan. In later years, Fergana, Samarkand, Bukhara in Uzbekistan emerged as major towns on the trade routes linking India with Europe and China. Amir Timur (known in the west as ‘Tamerlane’) was born near Shahrisabz. Babur the founder of the Moghul Empire in India came from Fergana in Uzbekistan. Indian merchants based in Samarkand and Bukhara were an integral part of local economy. Interactions over thousands of years contributed to close cultural linkages in architecture, dance, music and cuisine. Mirza Ghalib and Amir Khusro are stated to be notable Indians of Uzbek parentage. Indian Bollywood movies have traditionally been popular in Uzbekistan and its songs sung by Uzbek people.
The family of Nizams in India is descended from Abid Khan, a Turkoman from Samarkand, whose lineage is traced to Sufi Shihab-ud-Din Suhrawardi (1154–91) of Central Asia. In the early 1650s, on his way to Hajj, Abid Khan stopped in Deccan, where the young prince Aurangzeb, then Governor of Deccan, cultivated him. For those who attended the very well organised (thanks to Chairperson Rtn. Zinia Lawyer, Co-Chairperson Rtn. Ritu Desai, and the very warm hospitality of Rtn. Ptn. Zarina and PE Rtn. Framroze Mehta), the In-camera Fellowship on the Hyderabad of the Nizams on October 16th, would recall this aspect.
India had close interaction with the Uzbek SSR during the Soviet times. Indian leaders often visited Tashkent and other places. Prime Minister, Shri Lal Bahadur Shastri sadly and in an-untimely passed away in Tashkent on January 11th, 1966 after signing the Tashkent Declaration with Pakistan. There is said to be an element of mystery about his sudden demise at Tashkent. In August 1991, as the events leading to the disintegration of the USSR unfolded, President Islam Karimov, then Chairman of the Supreme Soviet of Uzbekistan, was visiting India. Uzbekistan became independent on September 1st, 1991.
Rotarians and Rotary Partners, have a great trip to Uzbekistan!
Preeti Mehta
President