2019 Premier’s Harmony Dinner was hosted by the Hon. Ray Williams, Minister for Multiculturalism, in the presence of the Hon. Gladys Berejiklian MP, Premier of New South Wales, to recognise and celebrate the significant contributions made by our multicultural leaders.
Attended by over a thousand representatives of our diverse State, the evening was a sit down cultural dress or black tie dinner, featuring incredible special performances.
A special part of the night was the announcement of those inducted into the Multicultural Honour Roll. Those honoured are recognised for their outstanding achievements in contributing to and building the successful multicultural society we enjoy today.
The Premier also presented the Premier’s Multicultural Community Medals recognising outstanding achievements in building community harmony, contributions by young people, community service, regional communities, and the NSW economy, to name a few.
Two members of the Indian Australian community have been recognised with top honours during the 2019 Premier’s Harmony Dinner.
NSW Premier Gladys Berejiklian presented the Stepan Kerkysharian AO Individual Medal to Dr Chandrika Subramaniyan and the Business Excellence Medal to Mr Sudhir Warrier.
Dr Subramaniyan is a lawyer and anti-domestic violence advocate. Before immigrating to Australia, Dr Subramaniyan worked as a journalist in India.
Mr Warrier is the Executive Chairman and owner of a Sydney based tourism and leisure group.
“Chandrika is an outstanding advocate for refugees and newly arrived migrants. In particular, she provides invaluable legal advice to women,” Mr Williams said.
“Sudhir is a shining example of excellence in business and has dedicated himself to creating employment and training opportunities for new migrants.”
Mr Williams congratulated Dr Subramaniyan and Mr Warrier, and said the Australian Indian community contributed significantly to NSW.
“There are more than 210,000 people in NSW with Indian ancestry, an increase of more than 50 per cent since 2011,” Mr Williams said.
“People like Chandrika and Sudhir strengthen our harmonious multicultural community and set an example for every member of our society to strive towards.”
The Stepan Kerkysharian AO Individual Medal recognises the contribution and achievement of an individual in facilitating and promoting social cohesion, understanding and acceptance between members of different cultural or faith communities in New South Wales
The Business Excellence Medal recognises an outstanding business person whose work positively contributes to local communities.
The Premier’s Harmony Dinner continues to celebrate the NSW Government’s commitment to a cohesive and inclusive society in which cultures, languages and religions of all citizens are accepted and appreciated.
