Over 1,20,000 people of the community met in Pune for the first time ever.
Even the likes of Mayawati and Bal Thackeray would have envied such a large congregation of people at Pune this Sunday. The event was the world's first gathering of Chitpavan Brahmins attended by more than 1,20,000 people from across 22 countries, besides India.
The importance of this gathering can also be gauged by the fact that outside the venue were hoardings displayed by the Bahujan Samaj Party, welcoming Chitpavan Brahmins.
However, the congregation was by no means political and was attended by many dignitaries like the vice-chief of the air staff, Air Marshal Bhushan Gokhale, who presided over the event, Hinduja Hospital CEO Pramod Lele, actor-director Vinay Apte and Member of Parliament from Indore, Sumitra Mahajan.
"The reason for this gathering was not to show the strength of our community or to overcome any kind of insecurity. It was to inculcate in us the need to have a world vision, so that we can pool our resources and work together notonly for Chitpavans, but for the entire society," said Anil Nene, co-ordinator of Overseas Chitpavan Brahmin community.
Vinay Apte though had a different take about the congregation. Apte held that almost every caste or community was holding congregations, indicating that our society was fast losing our secular character. ?The need of the hour is to show that we Chitpavans are also a force to reckon with,? he said.
"Chitpavans are a huge brain bank and we can contribute to the welfare of the society," he added.
For Air Marshal Gokhale, it was a great honour to address such a large gathering of Chitpavans.
He held that it was indeed a great pleasure to see so many people, who are not blood relatives but part of a community, under one roof
However, Gokhale lamented that "the NDA (National Defence Academy) was in Pune but no Pune in NDA".
He appealed to the gathering to consider making a career in the armed forces. Gokhale also held that like the economy of the country, even the military was gaining strength. "The Air Force is complimenting the economic progress being made by the country," he said.
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