Pravasi Bharatiya award demanded for Rajan Zed

NEW YORK: Some organisations in India have demanded a Pravasi Bharatiya Samman Award for Rajan Zed, the priest who delivered the first Hindu opening prayer in the US Senate July 12.

The Pravasi Bharatiya Samman Awards are the highest honour for non-resident Indians (NRIs) and will be given at Pravasi Bharatiya Divas, the annual conclave of the Indian diaspora scheduled for January 2008 in New Delhi.

In separate letters to the ministry of overseas Indian affairs, Dharam Loonaa, chairperson of Prayer and Peace Circle, and Lila D. Sharma, president of India Heritage Panel, both of Chandigarh, listed various activities undertaken by Zed to promote ancient Indian heritage and culture abroad, especially in the US.

Loonaa, in his communication, said that with his courage, breadth of vision and graciousness, Zed had rekindled Indian pride, inspired the youth on how they must strive to uphold their ancient values while taking part in the fast changing world, and restored a sense of belonging and self-esteem among Indians by presenting ancient Sanskrit teachings to a Western audience.

Zed, who earned his journalism degree from the Panjab University in Chandigarh, volunteers as a priest to serve the sick in various hospitals of northwestern Nevada and adjoining California.

Sharma wrote that after the eloquent 1893 Chicago address of Swami Vivekananda, Zed has again brought ancient Indian culture and Hinduism in the forefront of American psyche with his short but powerful prayer in the US Senate. The event got wide publicity because a few Christian protestors tried to disrupt it.

The Nevada Clergy Association recently honoured Zed for his message of peace and unity and his selfless work in bringing the community together, Sharma added.

Now the California State Senate in Sacramento has invited Zed to read the opening prayer Aug 27.