As Indian-American community is gearing up to host Prime Minister Narendra Modi this Sunday at the iconic Madison Square Garden here, the organisers today announced an elaborate programme for almost day-long event including a 360-degree rotating platform for him to address over 16,000 general public and about 2,600 VIP guests. The VIP guests would include elected officials of Indian origin including South Carolina Governor Nikki Haley, although some others including Louisiana Governor Bobby Jindal may not be able to come due to intense election season currently underway in the US.
Besides the main venue, there would be at least 50 other locations across the country where special arrangements have been made for live telecast of the Prime Minister's speech and other events that include a nearly two-hour long entertainment programme. There is a tremendous interest in the community in the US-India relationship and the event at Madison Square Garden has been oversubscribed by more than 10,000 people, the Indian American Community Foundation said.
"Last minute requests to attend the event were coming in at the rate of hundreds per day," said Indian American Community Foundation (IACF) President Bharat Barai. At 16.4 per cent, Indian-Americans are the third largest Asian-American group in the US, numbering 2.8 million strong, which is almost 1 per cent of the US population. It is also one of the fastest growing ethnic groups in the country. As per estimates, the average median household income of Indian Americans is USD 88,000 as compared to USD 66,000 for other Asians and USD 49,800 for the total US population. The percentage of Indians with higher education is also higher than other Asian ethnic groups. "The diaspora will also be traveling from forty eight American states and five Canadian provinces to participate in the event," said IACF spokesperson Anand Shah.
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