Narpani-SINDA Family Day

Mr Tharman Shanmugaratnam
Minister for Finance and Chairman, Board of Trustees, SINDA

Ms Indranee Rajah, President, SINDA

Mr Hri Kumar, Adviser, Narpani Pearavai

Mr P Thirunal Karasu, Chairman, Narpani Pearavai

Distinguished Guests

Ladies and Gentlemen

Vanakkam
 
1    It is indeed heartening to see so many of you, with families, come together in large numbers to support this event, organised by Narpani and SINDA.   

2    This Family Day is a very special event for all of us in the Indian community. Partnerships like this, for families and friends to enjoy a day together, augur well for the Indian community.  I hope it will bring us even closer each time, for us to bond with each other – young and old, and with the community. With community bonding and family bonding, we will learn together how to help each other in education, workplace and overcoming some of the family problems some in our community face in daily life.  

3    Narpani Pearavai and the Indian Activity Executive Committees (IAECs) have been organising various programmes to promote and enhance understanding, respect, mutual support and interaction among Indian Singaporeans of different backgrounds, as well as others of Indian origin who have settled in our midst, and above all, bonding with other communities with whom we live.  They have contributed immensely to community development in the broader sense in their on-going efforts to build social capital in line with People’s Association’s Community 2015 vision. 

4    SINDA has, in the past two decades, partnered the community in various ways to uplift the educational performance of our young.  Support and contributions from the community have allowed SINDA to run extensive Tuition, Reading, Family and Youth programmes for Indian students and provide a multitude of support services, such as bursaries for students and financial assistance for low-income families. 

5    We have seen Indian students make progress in education over the past 20 years.  While parity with national average results has not been achieved for Maths and Science subjects at landmark examinations such as the PSLE, SINDA will strive to achieve it with time.  But that needs your help and the effort of your children.  We, as family and community, need to motivate our children and youth so that they would aspire for greater success in education and the attainment of success as they embark on careers.

6    SINDA’s collaboration with Narpani in this family day event symbolises the community partnership required to achieve our mission of building a well-educated, resilient and confident community of Indians in Singapore. The tagline for today’s event, “A Brighter Future, Together” encapsulates the spirit of progress through unity.

7    Community events such as today’s Family Day are instrumental in strengthening our social fabric.  They help to foster closely-knit and harmonious families and a more cohesive society.   As a community, we must not be divided by social or ethnic differences.  In a secular society like ours, we should be part of the effort to get different ethnic communities do things together for the common good.  Narpani Pearavai and the IAECs have an important role to play in this effort.  You should continue to organise community activities for all Singaporeans to facilitate closer social interaction and strengthen our bonds as a harmonious society.  

8    I am heartened to see new citizens & PRs in our midst.  Their interacting with the locals and coming together during this Family Day event is something we all should encourage.  I hope this integration and bonding will extend beyond today’s event into other spheres.  We must support these people who bring diverse skills and experiences into Singapore, and contribute so much to enhancing our economy, to the extent they have enriched us as persons of Indian origin and as a multi-racial society.  New arrivals and foreign workers may cause discomfort because of our unfamiliarity with their diverse accents and habits, but we must not forget how they have made our lives better. We must appreciate the contributions of these foreigners and new citizens, and welcome them into our midst, as our ancestors were welcomed in days gone by.  I appeal to them to make the effort to befriend us and make the effort to integrate into our society.   Narpani Pearavai and SINDA can and should continue to play an active role in promoting such integration by involving the new citizens and PRs in their activities, not just today but throughout each passing day.      

9    I commend Narpani Pearavai, the IAECs and SINDA for putting together this event and hope all participants will enjoy themselves today.

Nandri Vanakkam

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