Quite a Memorable Year for Indian Community

It has been quite an exhilerating ride for the Indian community in Cleveland. In October, a magnificent statue of Mahatma Gandhi was dedicated at the India Cultural Garden in Rockefeller Park. Considering the influence of Mahatma Gandhi on Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. and the civil rights movement, it is interesting that the statue is located off Martin Luther King Boulevard.

The 10-ft bronze statue, by world famous sculptor Gautam Pal of Kolkatta (formerly known as Calcutta) is the first Gandhi statue in Ohio. Mr. Ronen Sen, India's ambassador to the U.S., Rev. Dr. Otis Moss, Jr, pastor of the Olivet Institutional Baptist Church, U.S. Congressman Dennis Kucinich and Cleveland City Council Majority Leader Sabra Pierce Scott unveiled the statue, capping an emotional day for the Indian community.

The dedication was held as part of One World Day, the annual celebration of Cleveland's ethnic diversity. The India garden hosted the event to highlight the significance of adding Mahatma Gandhi, the icon of peace to the landscape of the Cleveland Cultural Gardens, whose motto is: "Peace Through Mutual Understanding".

Earlier in the day, soil from India was added to a crypt at the American Legion garden that contains soil from the other countries represented in the Cleveland Cultural Gardens. This was the first time the ceremony, symbolic of the unity of cultures, had been performed in almost 50 years. Soil from the Gandhi Museum in Madurai, and the Gandhi Ashram in Sabarmati, India had been brought to Cleveland for the ceremony, which was conducted by Ambassador Ronen Sen.

In December, Indian born entreprenuer Monte Ahuja, Chairman and CEO of Transtar Industries and his wife, Usha Ahuja announced a $30 million gift to University Hospitals of Cleveland, the largest single gift in the hospital's 140-year history. In recognition of the gift, the soon to be built 200 bed hospital in Beachwood will be named the Ahuja Medical Center. The Ahujas are major supporters of the Indian community-- Mr. Ahuja is a past president of the Federation of India Community Associations, better known as FICA, and Mrs. Ahuja served as the Chair of the Board of Trustees.

Later in December, Dr. Mohan Reddy, Professor of Technology Management at Case Western Reserve University's Weatherhead School of Management, was appointed as the Dean of the school. He had been serving as the interim dean since August. Dr. Reddy, a graduate of the University of Mysore, India joined CWRU in 1985, and has been the recipient of multiple teaching excellence awards. He also serves as a director of several local companies.

Highlighting the contributions of the large number of Indian physicians in the Cleveland area, Dr. Arun Singh, director of Ophthalmic Oncology at the Cole Eye Institute at the Cleveland Clinic was appointed as the editor of the British Journal of Ophthalmology, an international peer-reviewed publication for clinical and laboratory investigations. Dr. Singh received his medical degree from Jawaharlal Institute of Post Graduate Medical Education and Research in Pondicherry, India.

The pride of the community was evident at the annual celebration of India's Republic Day, which attracted a large number of attendees on a cold, snowy night in January. Former Congressman Louis Stokes, who was the featured speaker, spoke of the progress that India has made in recent years and the buzz that it has created. To those in attendance, the momentum of the past few months was unmistakable....