LONG ISLAND, NY (TIP): The community stood together in joy and pride at the celebration of 12th Outstanding Women’s Achievement Gala on March 5, a part of Women’s History Month and International Women’s Day Celebrations. At the gala, attended by over 300 guests, five distinguished women with the highest caliber were honored for their achievements. Chairperson Indu Jaiswal and Gala Chair Shammi Singh, both known for their strong commitment and dedication to the community cause, along with the entire team of IAF, were the organizing force behind the GALA.

New York State Assemblywoman Jenifer Rajkumar and Town of North Hempstead Clerk Ragini Srivastava were described as symbols of woman empowerment and success in his welcome address by Dr. Bobby Kalotee.

Five distinguished women who had excelled in their profession and community services were presented with Outstanding Women’s achievements Awards. They were also presented with Citations from Deputy Supervisor Dorothy Goosby from Town of Hempstead, Joseph Saladino , Supervisor Town of Oyster Bay, Nassau County Comptroller Office Elaine Phillips, Town of North Hempstead Clerk Ragini Srivastava.

The honorees included Sandhya Bhatia, Branch Manager, Vice president of Flushing Bank , Nayana Brahmbhatt – a BAPS Volunteer, Vandana Jauhar, a leading musical artist and singer, Dr. Parul Dua Makkar, the owner of PDM Family Dental in Long Island, and Dr. Purvi Parikh, an allergist and immunologist at Allergy and Asthma Associates of Murray Hill. Young Achiever Ria Parashar is a volunteer at Children’s Hope and helps the Special Needs Community. The honorees were graciously moderated by Ratna Bhalla, Inesha Joneja, Chanbir Sethi, Roopam Maini, Dr. Prachi Dua, Dr. Pallavi Singh and Sunita Manjrekar.

This was followed by a special Bare Foot -Special presentation by Nilima Madan. Bare Foot Empress follows the remarkable journey of Karthyayani Amma, who having never access to education as a girl finally gets to join a first-grade class at the age of 96 years. Written and directed by Michelin Star Chef Vikas Khanna it is produced by Oscar nominated Doug Roland. Video clips were provided by well-known TV anchor Ms. Renee Mehrra.
Among those present during the event were Honorable Padma Shri Dr Sudhir Parikh, Dr Sudha Parikh, Dr Bobby Kumar Kalotee Founder of IAF, Dr Urmilesh Arya, Dr Bhupendra Patel, Mr Surinder Rametra, Beena Kothari, Vijay Goswamy, Anju Sharma, Sanju Sharma, Jasbir Jay Singh, Flora Parekh – President of Gift of Life USA, Anil Shah from VTNY, Sunil Jain from Vass Pipe, Rizwan Qureshi from HAB Bank, Madhu Pareek from Navika, Anuj Rihal, Dr. Harshad Bhatt from BAPS, Gobind Munjal President National AIA, Smriti Khanna, Dr Dina Pahlajani President Children’s Hope, members of AAPIQLI, Harry Malhotra several past honorees and many distinguished community and organizational leaders.
JUS Punjabi TV anchor Aashmeeta Yogiraj emceed the event.
The entire IAF team with several volunteers were instrumental in making the event a grand success.