Resourceful Australian Indian Network

Hansard ID: HANSARD-1323879322-110270

Hansard session: Fifty-Seventh Parliament, First Session (57-1)

Resourceful Australian Indian Network

Mr MARK COURE (Oatley) (18:24):

:06 I inform the House of the success of the Resourceful Australia Indian Network Pongal celebration held on 25 January. The Pongal festival is one of the biggest festivals celebrated in South India and is a thanksgiving for the plentiful harvest received. This is when farmers bring newly harvested rice home and feed their cattle a rice dish called Pongal, from which the festival got its name. It is dedicated to Lord Surya the Sun God. The Pongal festival is also celebrated as Tamil Nadu's new year day. The festival is not only an opportunity to celebrate Indian culture but also to celebrate the ever‑growing Australian‑Indian relationship. Australia and India share sport, cuisine, tourism and trade. The Indian community in New South Wales is making an immense contribution to our State. I thank Dr Sudha Natarajan and the whole team at the Resourceful Australian Indian Network [RAIN] for a fantastic celebration. I look forward to continuing my strong relationship with RAIN into the future.