CHENNAI: The Tamil Nadu government will be celebrating World Tamil Diaspora Day 2024 on January 11 and 12, to honour the heritage of Tamils worldwide.
Commissioner of Rehabilitation and Non-Resident Tamils (NRT) Welfare Department, B Krishnamoorthy, told TNIE that the event, themed ‘Tamil Vellum’ (Tamil shall win), is specifically designed to highlight and celebrate the achievements and contributions of the global Tamil diaspora.
The event features numerous arts and culture programmes, poetry recitals from eminent personalities, business opportunities with startups and exporters, informative sessions regarding the antiquity, history, and growth of Tamil and its people, and stalls by government departments showcasing services tailor-made for NRTs, said Krishnamoorthy.
About 500 Tamil sangams from across the globe are expected to participate in the festivities, with an estimated attendance of around 2,000 NRTs.
The event will also mark the culmination of the ‘Reaching Roots’ programme, a 15-day cultural tour across Tamil Nadu for second and third-generation Tamil diaspora youth.
The event will highlight two significant schemes for the Tamil diaspora, namely ‘Enadhu Graamam’ and ‘Namma School - Namma Ooru Palli.’ The former aims to bring in contributions from the global Tamil diaspora for the development of their own native villages in the state.
While the latter is an initiative by the Department of School Education that encourages NRTs to support the development of about 37,000 government schools in Tamil Nadu, said the commissioner.
The occasion will also feature many organisations from within the state’s industrial ecosystem, including Guidance Tamil Nadu, FaMeTN and StartupTN, enabling NRTs to identify and explore investment opportunities.
Moreover, MSME exporters from various sectors will exhibit their products at the event.
A specially designed pavilion featuring 58 GI-tagged products from Tamil Nadu, modelled after a traditional Angadi Theru (commercial street), is set to be a part of the event.
Krishnamoorthy added that authentic Tamil food will be provided at the event through the Ilangai Tamizhar Unavagam and other small businesses.
Krishnamoorthy added that the state is planning to come out with an NRT ID card for Non-Resident Tamils to avail the services of the NRT commissionerate, such as insurance and pension schemes, marriage assistance, scholarships and even legal aid to assist migrant Tamils.