With 75,000 attending, Toronto hosts ‘largest’ India Day gala
TORONTO:Canada’s biggest city is now laying claim to hosting the largest celebration of Indian Independence Day in North America.
On Sunday, thousands thronged Nathan Phillips Square in downtown Toronto for the annual India Day festival. The final count of participants was nearly 75,000. “This has become the largest India Day parade in North America, if not in the world outside India,” Dinesh Bhatia, India’s Consul General in Toronto, said. The annual event is usually held on the first Sunday following August 15.
The parade, with its colourful floats, showcasing various states of India and their cultures, started in 2008. Over time, it has turned into a “showpiece”, said Anu Srivastava, head of Panorama India, the umbrella body of Indian community and cultural organisations. She said the number of participants was “unprecedented”.
Last year’s celebration had attracted nearly 60,000 people, and had to be moved to a bigger venue since Yonge and Dundas Square, the location used until 2016, wasn’t big enough.
Bhatia cited growth in the size of the community due to immigration, better awareness of the event and a sense of belonging as reasons for the rise in interest.
It wasn’t surprising Canadian politicians were among those present, including federal minister of science and sport Kirsty Duncan, leader of Federal Conservative Party Andrew Scheer, and Toronto mayor John Tory.