Indo-Pak Reverence Conference

January 15, 2005

There was no need for champagne. A great show of love, some nostalgia, gleamer of a better tomorrow, and a touching poem. That cocktail lent effervescence to the evening, and more than made up for the absence of the comparatively staid bottle of bubbly, as the curtain raiser to the Indo-Pak Reverence Conference unfolded a new chapter in Indo-Pak peace initiatives.

Pune , with its mix of industry, education and culture, played the perfect host to the 130-strong Pakistani delegation, in the city for the seven-day conference that gets underway tomorrow.

After an exchange of Puneri pagdis for Pakhtun ones from Peshawar, an emotionally-charged speech on love, humanity and the need to blur borders by Dada J.P. Vaswani changed the mood. The awards ceremony tone quickly became a distant memory. And as Dada finished his poem, specially written for the occasion, many from both sides of the border could hardly contain themselves.

There was a resounding ‘yes' from almost all the 70-odd Pakistani delegates, who are in the city to attend the Indo-Pak Reverence Conference 2005, when spiritual leader J.P. Vaswani asked, “We will extend a hand of loving friendship to you; will you also do the same?”

Expressing concern over the 57 years of hatred between the two countries, Vaswani said, “In the last five decades we have spent over a billion rupees in the name of self-defence. This money could have been utilised for the development of both countries, where still hundreds of people sleep hungry. May this delegation from both the countries hoist the banner of peace which could be seen from any corner of the world.

Topping the list were former Maharashtra CM and present Andhra Pradesh Governor Sushilkumar Shinde , and Union Minister for Information and Broadcasting S. Jaipal Reddy. Adding to the list were Ram Jethmalani , former minister, and renowned environmentalist Mohan Dharia , and MCCIA president Ravi Pandit .

Eleven successful professionals from various fields were presented the TMC ‘Awards of Excellence' for year 2003-04 on the occasion.