ePaper Nov 5, 2015

2 CANADA – COMMUNITY DESI EXPRESS www.desiexpressonline.com Thursday, November 5, 2015 FREE COMMUNITY LISTINGS DESI EXPRESS will run photos of your cherished events –Weddings, Parents or Grandparents Anniversaries, Birthdays, Landmark Events in your Life – as a free community service. Please email a few photos with brief descriptions to: editor@desiexpressonline.com to avail of the free service By A Staff Reporter Four years after Punjabi became Canada’s third most common language, it has now attained the same status in the country’s new Parliament, after English and French, following the election of 20 Punjabi- speaking candidates to the House of Commons. Twenty-three Members of Parliament of South Asian origin were elected to the House of Commons, Parliament of Canada, in the Oct 19 parliamentary elections. Of them, 19 can be said to claim Indo-Canadian heritage. Of the total 23, three — Chandra Arya, born and raised in India; Gary Anan- dasangaree, a Tamil; and Maryam Monsef, of Af- ghan origin — do not speak Punjabi, The Hill Times reported. Of the 20 who speak Punjabi, 18 are Liberals and two are Conservatives. Among the newly-elect- ed Punjabi-speaking MPs, 14 are males and six are fe- males. Ontario elected 12, British Columbia four, Al- berta three and one is from Quebec. “The voice of the Indo- Canadian community will now be very well repre- sented in the Parliament. In the overall aspect of it, the South Asian community won,” MP Deepak Obhrai of Conservative Party said. In an interview with the paper, Navdeep Bains said although 20 Punjabi-speak- ing MPs have been elected, these MPs represent all constituents regardless of By Gurmukh Singh The swearing-in of four Indian-Canadians as cabi- net ministers is “a great day for Canada and a great day for India”, said Herb Dha- liwal, the western world’s first Indian-origin cabinet minister when he was ap- pointed Canada’s revenue minister in 1997. Hailing the appointment of a record four Indian-Ca- nadians as cabinet minis- ters by Canada’s new Prime Minister JustinTrudeau, top Indian-Canadian leaders said this historic develop- ment will herald a new era in India-Canada relations. AjitSomeshwar,chairman of the Canada India Founda- tion (CIF), said: “Prime Min- ister Justin Trudeau must be commended for achieving gender parity and for reflect- ing Canada’s ethnic diversity in his cabinet. The inclusion of four members of Indian origin in the cabinet, out of a record total 19 Indo-Cana- dian MPs elected, is a matter of great pride for all Indo- Canadians.” Stressing the conclusion of the long-impending free trade treaty between India and Canada, Someshwar said, “We hope Prime Min- ister Trudeau will continue to enhance relationship with India and boost bilateral trade between the two coun- tries which still remains far below potential.The Canada India Foundation will sup- port the new government in achieving this objective.” Former Canadian health minister Ujjal Dosanjh, who too made history in 2001 by becoming the first-ever non- white provincial premier in Canada when he was elected to top post in British Colum- bia, said: “The appointment of four Indo-Canadians to the cabinet is another big step in the community’s his- tory in Canada.” He noted the community has been in Canada for more thanahundredyears,indicat- ing it is today well and truly part of the mainstream. INTHIS EDITION Fiction, P16 Comics, P18 Ask for your copy of DESI EXPRESS at your neighbourhood public library their party affiliation or eth- nic origin. “It speaks to our com- mitment to diversity and allowing individual [MPs] to play an important role in our political institutions. The main issue to under- stand is that we have a very clear mandate to execute our platform and we also have a responsibility to represent our constituents, which are very diverse,” Bains said. Iqra Khalid, the Liberal MP who was born in Paki- stan, said the diversity of the newly-elected House reflects the true make-up of Canada. According to Statistics Canada’s 2011 National Household Survey, 430,705 Canadians identified Pun- jabi as their mother tongue, making it the third most common language after English and French. The 430,705 native Punjabi speakers make up about 1.3 per cent of Can- ada’s population. The 20 Punjabi-speaking MPs represent almost six per cent of the House of Commons. Most Indo-Canadian victories came in Canada’s biggest province of Ontario as many seats in Brampton and Mississauga cities went to the Indo-Canadian can- didates. In Brampton Raj Grewal, Kamal Khera, Ruby Sahota and Sonia Sidhu, all from the Liberals, came through. Community gearing up to celebrate Diwali in style By A Staff Reporter Members of the Hindu and Sikh communities are gear- ing up to celebrate Diwali, the Festival of Lights. Diwali this year starts Monday, Nov 9. The full word is Deep- avali, with Deepa meaning Light, and Avali a Group or string (chain). The festival signifies the victory of light over darkness, or of the light of knowledge over the dark forces of ignorance. The festival holds spe- cial significance for the Sikh community, stemming from Bandi Chhor Divas. Several temples, gur- dwaras and community centres have made ar- rangements to celebrate the event. Brampton-based Missis- sauga Ram Mandir, which is celebrating the festival over weekend, Saturday, Nov 7, is reporting a sold- out event. Several private commu- nity groups are also hold- ing their own community events for members. Bramalea City Centre Meanwhile Bramalea City Centre is holding its 2015 Canada Dry DiwaliFest across Nov 6-8. The three-day festivities kick off with the official lighting of the lamp. The event promises spectacular stage performances, inter- active family activities, a South Asian fashion show, free sampling, photos with mascots, and more. Mississauga The City of Mississauga, which requires a permit to be issued for those propos- ing to burst fireworks, has announced a special one- day exemption to the rule on Nov 11. Mississauga residents are reminded that fireworks can- notbesetoffonapublicstreet or roadway; they can only be set off in a park if a permit is obtained from the Fire Chief; and fireworks should only be purchased from a licensed retailer permitted to sell fire- works to the general public within the City. Brampton Brampton residents who plan to use fireworks at their homes on Diwali (Nov 10 and 11) must apply for a City permit. Applications are currently being accept- ed, until Nov 8. The permit is free and will be considered for pri- vate properties that are at least 18 metres (60 feet) wide at the front. Setting off fireworks without a permit is illegal, the city warns. It adds fireworks are not permitted in public spaces such as streets, sidewalks, school yards and parks. Complaints relating to the illegal use of fireworks can be directed to Enforce- ment and By-law Services at 905-458-3424 or by call- ing 311. The Trudeau family being greeted with rapturous applause earlier, during a campaign stop in Brampton. 23 MPs of South Asian origin Community hails Cabinet appointments

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