By IANS
New York : An Indian American army pilot is breaking new ground by becoming the first Hindu to be deployed in Iraq for combat operation.
Parag Desai, a resident of Minnesota, is a US Army reserve pilot going to serve in Iraq for the next one year.
On Sunday, around 300 Hindu community members came together to give a warm send-off to Desai. They were proud that he was doing his duty as an American and as a Hindu.
Desai said all community members of Minnesota were like his own family. At the get together, he was surrounded by well wishers, who gave him words of encouragement, news site wcco.com reported.
"It's very much like everyone's son is going. We're really proud of him," said Sonal Reddy, Desai's sister.
The 35-year-old pilot will leave for training in Texas Wednesday and then spend about a year in Iraq.