By Parveen Chopra, IANS
New York : The United Nations' decision to observe Gandhiji's birthday on Oct 2 as International Day of Non-Violence was a fitting tribute to the Mahatma, Minister of State for External Affairs Anand Sharma has said.
Speaking at a reception organised by the Consulate General of India here Friday, Sharma highlighted the universal appeal of Mahatma Gandhi and added that his message of world peace is even more relevant today.
Members of the Indian community and media attended the function.
"As we celebrate the centenary of the Satyagraha movement this year, which also happens to be the 60th anniversary of India's independence, there could be no better gift than to have Mahatma Gandhi's birthday celebrated as the Day of Non-Violence," he said.
Referring to the 8th World Hindi Conference scheduled to take place in New York July 13-15, Sharma underlined the significance of Hindi as a unifying language for Indians and the people of Indian origin living all over the world.
The inauguration of the Hindi Conference at the UN headquarters here is symbolic of its growing importance as an international language, the minister said and hoped Hindi would soon be recognised as an official UN language.