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    NORTH AMERICAN Newsline                                           NOVEMBER 28, 2025        |  The Indian Eye 16

                           RANA New York Marks 26th Annual

              Deepawali Gala with Community Awards and

                            Major Philanthropic Commitments

            OUR BUREAU
            Long Island, NY
                  he  Rajasthan Association  of North  Amer-
                  ica (RANA) New York celebrated its 26th
            TAnnual Deepawali Gala with colour, tradi-
            tion and community pride, drawing more than 400
            guests from across the tri-state area. Held in Long
            Island, the event brought together senior diplomats,
            business leaders and prominent members of the In-
            dian diaspora, reinforcing RANA’s role as one of
            the region’s most active cultural organisations.
                Deepmahotsav Chairman Dr. Raj Bansal
            opened the evening by welcoming attendees, fol-
            lowed  by  the arrival  of distinguished guests,  in-
            cluding India’s Consul General in New York Am-
            bassador Binaya Pradhan, Deputy Consul General
            Vishal Harsh, Indian Foreign Service Officer Suren-
            dra Adhana from India’s Permanent Mission to
            the UN, Air India’s USA & Canada Head Shalini
            Singh, and New York City Deputy Commissioner
            Dilip Chauhan.
                The  evening  featured  a  series  of  significant
            recognitions. For the first time, RANA New York
            presented the Rajasthan Ratan Lifetime Achieve-
            ment Award, honouring Dr. Narendra Kukar, who
            has lived in the United States for nearly six decades.
            The Excellence in Medicine Award was given to Dr.
            Bharat  Gupta,  while  the  Young  Achiever  Award
            was presented to Ms. Nidhi Laddha.
                RANA also used the platform to announce
            2025 as the International Rajasthan Tourism Year,
            inviting essays on Rajasthan tourism from partici-
            pants of all ages. Five winners received `25,000 each
            along with Certificates of Appreciation.
                In his address, RANA President Prem Bhan-
            dari underlined the vast potential of Rajasthan,
            noting that the state is geographically larger than
            133 countries and holds immense promise for solar
            energy and investment. He praised the Consulate
            General  of  India  in  New  York  for  operating  365
            days a year and lauded Ambassador Pradhan and
            his 70-member team for serving 2.4 million Indians   accept the Nassau County honour, saying he would   VSS), Jaipur, in partnership with India’s Ministry of
            across the United States.                    not accept the recognition until he ensured the mor-  External Affairs.
                In a major philanthropic gesture, RANA found-  tal remains of Ajit Choudhry from Alwar were re-  Under the MEA’s ‘India for Humanity’ initia-
            ers K.K. and Chandra Mehta presented a `1 crore   patriated from Russia to his family. The audience   tive, BMVSS has already held nearly 36 Jaipur Foot
            cheque to Bhandari for ongoing charitable and   later rose to its feet to applaud both Dr. Kukar and   camps across Africa, Latin America and Asia, pro-
            humanitarian projects. This year’s annual souvenir   Bhandari for their contributions to the community.  viding artificial limbs and mobility aids free of cost.
            featured the Jaipur Police Commissionerate on its   A major announcement came during the gala   As the world’s largest NGO serving the different-
            cover, recognising Jaipur as India’s second safest   when physician and philanthropist Dr. Deepak   ly-abled, BMVSS continues to amplify India’s glob-
            city and honouring the service of former Commis-  Nandi pledged to sponsor a free Jaipur Foot camp   al message of compassion and service.
            sioner Biju Joseph. He was also presented with a   in his birthplace, the Andaman & Nicobar Islands,   The gala ended with renewed community spir-
            Certificate of Recognition by Nassau County for his   in memory of Veer Savarkar. Welcoming the ini-  it and a reaffirmation of RANA’s commitment to
            transformative work in improving public safety.  tiative, Bhandari—who also chairs Jaipur Foot   cultural preservation, humanitarian outreach and
                In an emotional moment, RANA Secretary   USA—said the camp would be organised through   strengthening bonds within the Indian diaspora.
            Ravi Jargarh recalled that Bhandari declined to   Bhagwan Mahaveer Viklang Sahayata Samiti (BM-

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