Hartford

Governor Ned Lamont signed Senate Bill 1519 on June 10, providing religious accommodations for the state’s 30,000 Hindus, Buddhists, Sikhs, and Jains to celebrate the cultural holiday.

Connecticut has officially recognized Diwali as a state holiday, becoming the second state after Pennsylvania to enshrine the Festival of Lights into law. Governor Ned Lamont signed Senate Bill 1519 on Tuesday, June 10, providing religious accommodations for the state’s 30,000 Hindus, Buddhists, Sikhs, and Jains to celebrate the cultural holiday.

The bill received unanimous support from Connecticut’s State Legislature and laid out workplace and educational accommodations for observants.

The legislation, introduced by a bipartisan committee, will go into effect on October 1, 2025, ensuring that community members can observe Diwali without workplace or school-related barriers.

Rajeev Pahuja, a Hamden resident who worked with the Hindu American Foundation (HAF) to support the bill, said, “Diwali not only represents the rich tapestry of our diverse community, it reminds us to respect and understand one another. Making Diwali a state holiday ensures that future generations of Hindus will be seen and valued in Connecticut.”

Read – Diwali: A Radiant Celebration of Culture, Spirituality, and Victory over Darkness

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Courtesy: India Currents

The post Connecticut Honors Diwali with Holiday first appeared on Sindh Courier.

Karachi

U.S. Consul General Mark Stroh visited Hyderabad, Jamshoro, and Thatta from November 2 to November 4 to further strengthen the partnership with the people of Sindh and promote lifesaving COVID-19 vaccinations.

Consul General Stroh inaugurated partnerships in education, healthcare, energy, and prison reforms.

In Hyderabad, Consul General Mark Stroh visited the vaccine unit of the Shah Bhittai hospital as part of the United States and Sindh government’s immunization awareness campaign Fizaoon Se Falah Tak. The United States in the global fight against COVID-19 has donated more than 200 million vaccine doses worldwide.

“We stand with the people of Pakistan to save lives.  I encourage the residents of Hyderabad and the surrounding areas to get vaccinated as soon as possible to protect your families and community from COVID-19,” said Consul General Stroh while interacting with Pfizer vaccine recipients and healthcare workers in Hyderabad.  Stroh noted that to date, the people of the United States have provided approximately 23 million live-saving doses of Pfizer and Moderna COVID vaccine to Pakistan, the largest such donation to any country worldwide.

He also joined Sindh Chief Minister Murad Ali Shah for a hand-over ceremony of the Sindh Prisons Staff Training Institute and Prison Management Information System. The projects, developed with support from U.S. Mission Pakistan and the United Nations Office on Drugs and Crime will help bring Pakistani prison practices in line with international standards.

Consul General Stroh launched the latest cohort of the English Access Microscholarship Program at the Lincoln Corner Hyderabad.  Since 2005, the two-year English-language education and leadership program has prepared more than 5,000 Sindh students for educational and professional success.

In Jhimpir, Consul General Stroh and Sindh Governor Imran Ismail inaugurated a U.S.-funded Wind Power Transmission System to help Pakistan transition to a cleaner, more sustainable energy mix.  The mutual U.S.-Pakistan investment has added 780 megawatts (MW) of wind power capacity to Pakistan’s National Energy Grid.

In Jamshoro, he visited the Hindu community of Thana Bola Khan where he met with Hindu leaders and the Chairperson of National Minority Rights Commission Chela Ram.  He paid respects at the Shri Guru Mangal Gir Ashram and reflected upon the shared U.S. and Pakistan belief in a democratic, tolerant, and unified society.  At the ashram, Stroh wished a Happy Diwali to all those who celebrate this day in Pakistan, the United States, and around the world.

In a meeting with the leadership of four universities from the Hyderabad and Jamshoro region, he discussed current and future partnerships between U.S. and Pakistani universities, including the current U.S.-funded partnerships to strengthen research and establish the Pakistani Legal Incubator program.

“The warm hospitality and rich culture of Sindh came through in my visit to the region and meetings with business, civil society, academic, and political leaders,” said Consul General Stroh. “I am proud of the partnerships we have with the people of Sindh, and I look forward to our continued collaboration.” (PR)

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Karachi

Sindh Minister for Minorities Affairs Giyan Chand Essarani has taken notice of the theft and vandalism at the Devi Mata Temple in Kotri town of Jamshoro district.

The Minister on Thursday contacted Senior Superintendent of Police District Jamshoro and sought the report of the unfortunate incident. He directed SSP to register the FIR of the tragic incident and trace the culprits involved in the incident so as to award them severe punishments from the court of law to curb such incidents.

Giyan Chand Essarani said that the Hindu community was busy in preparation of their religious festival Diwali and desecration of the temple was an intolerable incident. He directed SSP Jamshoro to beef up security arrangements of temples in the district to avoid such incidents.

Meanwhile, DIG Police Hyderabad also issued directives to the SSP Jamshoro, DSP Kotri and concerned SHO to arrest the culprits forthwith and recover the things stolen from temple.

Earlier, Essarani had demanded from the Federal Government to announce two-day holiday for Hindu employees on the occasion of Diwali being a major religious festival of the Hindu community. He said it is a long-standing demand of the millions of Hindus.

This demand was made by the Minister while talking on the occasion of handing over Diwali cheques at the Minority Affairs Department.

Giyan Chand Essrani said employees belonging to Hindu community were serving in remote cities of the country and they should be facilitated with two-day holiday so that they could celebrate the festival of lights with their families in befitting manner. He also added that private sector should also announce two-day holiday for their Hindu employees on Diwali.

Minister said that he would also recommend the Sindh government to consider the long standing demand of millions of Hindus living in the province.

Provincial Minister distributed cheques among hundreds of deserving women of Hindu community. He also directed the Department of Minority Affairs to ensure transparency in Diwali cheques. (PR)

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