Maharashtra: The third Maharashtra State Convention of India-Tibet Friendship Society (ITFS) was held at Shri Babasaheb Ambedkar Memorial Convention Centre in Badlapur Maharashtra on 10th December 2023 under the chairmanship of Professor Dr. Anand Kumar, the National President of ITFS and the State president Amrud Bansod.
Professor Dr. Anand Kumar, the National President of ITFS, Dr. Manoj Kumar, the National General Secretary of ITFS, Secretary Karma Choeying of the Department of Information and International Relations, Central Tibetan Administration (CTA), Shri Amrud Bansod, State president of ITFS, Arvind Nikose, the Regional Convenor of Core Group for Tibetan Cause-India, Dhondup Sangpo, the Tibetan Settlement Officer, Bhandara, Tashi Dekyi, India Tibet Coordination Office, Delhi are among the dignitaries who addressed the inaugural function of the convention.
Professor Dr. Anand Kumar in his inaugural address spoke on the core motto of the ITFS i.e. “Free Tibet, Secure India” and he spoke at length about India’s national security and its correlation with the freedom of Tibet. He commended the state ITFS President Shri Amrud Bansod and his colleagues for having established 17 district-level ITFS units throughout the state and urged the district functionaries to work for the Tibetan cause with much greater force and enthusiasm.
Secretary Karma Choeying spoke on India-Tibet Relations highlighting India’s Tibet Policy and the current situation inside Tibet. He dedicated the thriving Tibetan community in exile to the generosity of the government and people of India. He extended gratitude to India for hosting His Holiness the Dalai lama and the Tibetan people as their brethren. He also highlighted the importance of Tibetan support Groups in India for the Tibetan Freedom struggle and appealed to them to continue to support the CTA in reaching out to more Indian brothers and sisters and in making them informed supporters of the Tibetan cause.
The day-long Maharashtra State Convention of ITFS concluded with a unanimous declaration in support of the Tibetan cause and action plans for Tibet advocacy at the state level by all the 17th district units and their members.
The convention was organised by the Maharashtra chapter of ITFS to commemorate the 34th anniversary of the conferment of the Nobel Peace Prize to His Holiness the Dalai Lama and at the same time, to discuss the action plans to work for the Tibetan cause in the state of Maharashtra for the next 3 years. Panel discussions were also held on India-Tibet Relations, India’s Tibet Policy, and Tibet’s Freedom and India’s Security. Around 100 members of state-level ITFS from 17 districts in Maharashtra attended the conference and the working committee meeting.
-Reported by ITCO, New Delhi