An Indian community in Bahrain is gearing up to celebrate a milestone achievement as well as mark a dream-come-true this weekend.
In an historic event, Kannada Sangha Bahrain’s ambitious new building – Kannada Bhavana – will be inaugurated by Basavaraj Somappa Bommai, the Chief Minister of India’s southern Karnataka state, in a virtual ceremony on Friday.
The old premises of Kannada Sangha, situated on Shaikh Isa Avenue in Manama, were demolished in October 2018 and former prime minister of India H D Deve Gowda laid the foundation stone for the new building in November 2018.
Construction on the BD500,000 four-storey structure began in 2019 and was completed in March 2020. A soft opening was held in November 2020, after the coronavirus (Covid-19) pandemic scuppered plans for a grand inauguration.
“This is a proud moment for all Kannadigas in Bahrain, as our long-cherished dream is being fulfilled,” Kannada Sangha president Pradeep Shetty told the GDN.
“It’s the first Kannada Bhavana outside of India, with the Karnataka State government helping with the building costs,” he said, adding that several organisations and individuals from Bahrain and India have also supported the project, financially and otherwise.
However, he added that BD100,000 more is still needed for interior decoration.
“The Kannada Bhavana is a prestigious project for the community, which numbers more than 25,000 in Bahrain, and the facilities we have built will help meet the aspirations of the community and serve them better,” said Mr Shetty.
The building comprises a multi-purpose hall, a fully-fledged library, six smaller halls that can be used as classrooms for imparting training and tuition or for cultural activities and meetings, office spaces, and commercial/shopping area in the mezzanine level.
The main hall can accommodate around 500 people, and there is parking in the basement for 18 vehicles.
The sangha expects its new headquarters to become a hub of cultural, heritage, educational, sports and entertainment activities for the community and a centre of cultural relations between Bahrain and Karnataka.
Kannada Sangha was established in 1977 with the motto “Sangha Jeevana Suka Jeevana” (A life of togetherness is a happy life).
Over the years, the sangha has promoted the Kannada language, art and culture by organising events, charity drives, entertainment activities, social gatherings and humanitarian efforts.
The new building will be inaugurated at 9am at an event open to only invitees and sangha members.
The virtual ceremony will be telecast on a big screen.
Later, a felicitation ceremony and cultural events will be held from 4.30pm at the Kingdom Hall, New Millennium School, Zinj.
Indian Ambassador Piyush Srivastava will be the chief guest.
Guests of honour include Capital Governorate director of information and follow-up Yusuf Lori, Karnataka State Bharatiya Janata Party vice-president B Y Vijayendra, Kannada Saahitya Prishattu president Dr Mahesh Joshi, Karnataka State Backward Classes Commission chairman K Jayaprakash Hegde and NRK Forum Karnataka former vice-chairman Dr Arathi Krishna, among others.
andrewsv@gdnmedia.bh
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