Business magnate Dr. Sudhir Ruparelia has been elected on the board of trustees of the Indian Association of Uganda.
“Today I was elected one of the trustees of Indian Association. Thank you all,” Dr Sudhir posted on social media shortly after the function that took place at the Indian Association’s offices in Kampala on Sunday.
The Indian Association of Uganda was established in 1922 to foster unity and development.
The association’s work was interrupted when fallen dictator Idi Amin expelled Indians from Uganda in 1972 but the association was re-established when the Indian community returned to the country in the 1980s and 1990s.
One of their biggest achievements as stated on their website is “eradicating the Indophobia from the Ugandan African community.” As a result, over 27000 Indians living in Uganda with the peaceful life and both communities are socially and economically helping each other’s and working towards the development of Uganda.
In fact the Indian community that makes up less than 1 percent of the Ugandan population is said to contribute to 65 per cent of the country’s tax revenue.
The association coordinates charity activities of the members giving back to the Ugandan society that their family lineages have called home for over 100 years. The charities include but are not limited to scholarships for education, blood donation and free medical camps.
During the recent Diwali Dinner President Museveni hosted for the Indian community at State House, the hailed them for accelerating Uganda’s economic development and added that it was a big mistake for Amin to expel the Indians because they were “big assets to Africans.”