Category: Obituaries

HOUSTON: The Parameswaran family celebrated the life of Dr. P.G. Parameswaran with a special memorial service on Friday, May 27 at the Cherie Flores Garden Pavilions of the McGovern Centenial Gardens in Hermann Park. Born on October 9, 1938, Dr. Parameswaran passed away in Houston on January 6, 2022. He leaves behind his wife Lakshmy and sons Ashok and Rajesh.

A highlight of the celebration at Hermann Park was a flute recital by Varad Gaikwad (above photo). Eulogies to Dr. PG were presented by both his sons and a large numbers of friends and well wishers.

Dr. PG completed his residency in cardiothoracic surgery at Government Stanley Hospital in Chennai and held a series of professorial and research appointments in India before immigrating to the US in 1973. He spent his career,
1981-2005, practicing at Southeast Memorial Hospital.

Dr. PG is well know for single handedly adding over 20,000 South Asians to the bone marrow registry, leading to over 30 lifesaving donations. — P. Kulkarni

By Jawahar Malhotra

HOUSTON: Bechardas Thakkar was the owner and the president of East West International Inc. on Hillcroft Ave. in Houston.
He left his human body for his onward Journey on January 19, 2022. His funeral service was held at Sugar Land Mortuary, Sugar Land on January 25, 2022. His family members, friends and well-wishers attended to pay tribute to this remarkable individual who was loved and respected by all.
Bechardas was born in Anjar, Kutch, India and spent his childhood and early life in Mumbai. He came to the U.S.A. in the a early 80’s and started 220 Volt appliances and electronics business followed by additional businesses.
The life of Bechardas Thakkar remains as a beacon of inspiration for all of us. He lived a down to earth, very simple and honest life. He was a man with integrity, vision, character and with a strong devotion to his family.
His wife Laxmiben Thakkar – affectionately known to all as Mummy or Maaji to many in Houston – was the founder of Shri Jalaram Saibaba Temple at Hillcroft Ave. and in Sugar Land. with full support from Bechardas Thakkar – who was also affectionately known as Papaji.
Bechardas had gone to California to visit his children, grandchildren, and great grandchildren. However due to medical problems, he had to be hospitalized and subsequently, he passed away.
His sons Anilbhai, Pankajbhai, daughters Jyotiben and Pratimaben provided utmost care till the last moments of his life. The family wishes to express their deepest gratitude to the medical personnel for their wonderful care whenever needed.
They also appreciate and thank all their friends who were of enormous help during the final difficult period. The family is very thankful to all those who attended the funeral service.
Special thanks to Darshak Thackar who provided the music and bhajans and Mukund Gandhi for organizing the memorial event.
Many thanks to all the family, friends and those who were close to Papaji and Maji for their love and support throughout the years. Thanks to all the media for making announcements of Papaji’s passing.

World Hindu Council of America (VHPA) regretfully announces passing away of Dr. Mahesh Mehta (Maheshbhai), its founder and former President in Karnavati (Amdavad), India on December 14, 2021. He was eighty-six years old. He passed away on the pious day of Mokshda Ekadashi and Geeta Jayanti.

In late 1960s, when Hindus started to immigrate to the US in significant numbers very it was rare to find mandirs (temples) or community organizations.  There was an acute need of institutions that provided religious and cultural education to children of the first-generation immigrant community.  To fulfill this need, in 1970, Maheshbhai founded VHPA and subsequently, served as the General Secretary and the President of the organization for several years.

VHPA under the leadership of Maheshbhai pioneered weekend Hindu schools (Balvihars) and Summer Youth Camps for the Hindu children growing up in US.  This model of youth education has now been successfully adopted by almost all the Hindu organizations and temples.  National, regional and local Hindu conferences brought together Hindu community to network and explore issues ranging from parenting to challenges faced by the small and geographically dispersed Hindu community in America.  It also presented an avenue for early immigrants to explore opportunities offered by their newly adopted homeland.

A Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh (RSS) swayamsevak since his childhood, Maheshbhai spent several years as Sangh pracharak (full-time volunteer).  He also served as the President of the Gujarat state for Akhil Bharatiya Vidyarthi Parishad (ABVP).  Inspired by the second Sarsanghchalak of RSS, Param Pujaniya Guru Golwalkarji, Maheshbhai dedicated his life to building the Hindu movement and Hindu identity in North America.  He positioned Hindus as the leading contributors to the growth and development of their adopted country.  His work in the USA has been foundational; and now it has grown into a tree of many branches.  He was instrumental in establishing Hindu Swayamsevak Sangh, Hindu University of America, Hindu Students Council (HSC), Ekal Vidyalaya Foundation, Hindu Mandir Executives’ Conference (HMEC) India Quality Group, and Global Indians for Bharat Vikas (GIBV) among many others.

Under Maheshbhai’s leadership, VHPA held several highly successful events. The first International Hindu conference in 1984 at Madison Square Garden, New York saw participation by 4,500 delegates. 10,000 delegates attended the Global Vision 2000 conference held in 1993 to commemorate centenary of Swami Vivekanand’s Chicago Address of 1893. Dharma Samsad (Parliament) in the USA was held in 1998 followed by a 10-day Dharma Prasaar Yaatra in ten major cities with participation of 15,000 people in 1999. In the United Nations Millennium Peace Summit in the year 2000, 108 eminent Hindu spiritual leaders (Sant-Mahatmas) and scholars from Bharat participated in spiritual discussions at the United Nations (UNO) followed by lecture tours across US and followed by Hindu Sangam program at Staten Island, NY, where the then Prime Minister of Bharat Shri Atal Behari Vajpayee was also present.

Hindu community internationally sought Maheshbhai’s advice.  He traveled across the world to help motivate and organize the Hindu community.  He served as a Central Vice-President and a member of the Board of Trustees and Governing Council of Vishwa Hindu Parishad

A strong proponent of Indian democracy, Maheshbhai was the cofounder of Indians For Democracy (IFD) that organized protests from USA during 1975-77 against the clamping of illegal and undemocratic Emergency in Bharat by the then Government of PM Indira Gandhi. He was the founding member of the Friends of India Society International in 1976 and very successfully championed the cause of democracy in Bharat.  Maheshbhai helped found Overseas Friends of BJP.  Maheshbhai was a close confidante of Bharat’s Prime Minister Shree Narendrabhai Modi for many years.  He was one of the organizers of the Madison Square Garden (NY) program in September 2014, attended by 20,000 members of Indian diaspora where the Prime Minister of Bharat Shri Narendra Modi was the chief guest.

The President of Bharat awarded him Pravasi Bharatiya Samman Award in 2017 for his Community Services.

Maheshbhai was the soul of VHPA.  He was a great motivator, and exceptional organizer.  He created a large number of volunteers to work for the VHPA. There are hundreds of workers in USA and many other countries who were inspired by Maheshbhai to serve the society at large and Hindu society in particular. His legacy will live through countless workers who were inspired by his leadership, his dedication and untiring efforts to serve the Hindu society.

Maheshbhai was a thinker and influential orator. He had a deep understanding of our Sanatan Dharma, its fundamentals, its glorious as well as dark periods of history. He was well aware of the potentials of future and the current state of Hindu society.  A gifted writer, he penned a book titled, Hindu Philosophy in Action, In Search of Universal Well-being tracing the journey of VHPA.  His message was not just for Hindus; it was for humanity at large.

Professionally, Maheshbhai was a well-known research scientist in the field of membrane technology, he held two doctorate degrees and a law degree.  VHPA shares in grief of Raginibahen, Maheshbhai’s wife who was the silent force behind Maheshbhai’s success. May Ishwar grant the departed Aatma eternal peace and the family strength to pass through this difficult time. AUM Shanti.

 

Houston: Dronamraju Krishna Rao (14 January 1937 – 3 December 2020) was an Indian-born geneticist and president of the Foundation for Genetic Research in Houston, Texas. He was born in Pithapuram, in the state of Andhra Pradesh, India. One focus of his work has been the research of his mentor J. B. S. Haldane. He died in Houston at age 83.

Dronamraju went to M.R. College in Vizianagaram, Andhra University to study botany and earned a bachelor’s degree in 1955. He received a master’s degree from Agra University in 1957; he studied plant breeding and genetics. When J.B.S. Haldane moved to India in 1957, Dronamraju wrote to Haldane for an opportunity to pursue a research career under his direction at the Indian Statistical Institute in Calcutta.

Early in his research career, he discovered the first case of a gene on the human Y chromosome and published a paper in 1960. It was also part of his PhD thesis at the Indian Statistical Institute, Calcutta. Dronamraju’s research with Haldane at the Indian Statistical Institute included many areas.

Dronamraju’s research covered the visits of several species of lepidoptera to different colored flowers of Lantana camara reported the discovery of a species-specific pattern of color preference behavior by pollinating insects.

He did research in human genetics in India. In 1966, Dronamraju completed his PhD from the Indian Statistical Institute, Calcutta. He studied under J. B. S. Haldane. The topic of his doctoral thesis was “Genetic Studies of the Andhra Pradesh population”. Dronamraju’s early research in human genetics (and the independent work of L.D. Saghvi at the Tata Cancer Center in Mumbai) eventually led to the foundation of the Indian Society of Human Genetics.

Dronamraju received advanced training at University College, London and Johns Hopkins School of Medicine, followed by a postdoctoral fellowship in genetics at the University of Alberta.[4] After he moved to the US, he continued research on inbreeding in human populations such as the Amish population in Pennsylvania in collaboration with Victor A. McKusick at Johns Hopkins. He also studied the Seneca Indians in New York State and other populations in the US and Canada.

He studied the relationship between fetal mortality and the occurrence of oral cleft defects in families.In recent years, Dronamraju’s research focused on the history of genetics and human/medical genetics. He published several books, especially with reference to the contributions of his mentor J. B. S. Haldane.

By Jawahar Malhotra

The Woodlands: In the early years of the Indian community in the Bayou City, in 1968, when there were perhaps only 50 young families and a handful of foreign students at the University of Houston, there was a natural yearning to bond and find ways to gather for camaraderie and satisfy the yearning to reconnect with one’s roots. There weren’t many choices in a city that had yet to see an influx of diversity that is taken for granted today.

Realizing there were no other outlets, Raj Syal discussed an idea with a small group of friends and decided to bring in Indian films from New York to show once a month at the Agnes Arnold Hall Auditorium at UH. They chipped in some money, and he would pick up (and afterwards deliver) the four 12-inch round tin-cased reels from Hobby Airport, learnt how to run the projector, sell $1 tickets and even cajoled his wife Krishna and other women to make samosas and mint chutney and sell them 2 for a buck during the intermission. It went on for a couple of years and formed the heart and soul of the community’s efforts to define itself.

Encouraged by the response, Syal convinced others to join in and celebrate Indian events like Independence Day and Diwali with outdoor gatherings with food and music spun off vinyl LPs under the stars at UH in the grove by Shasta’s (the UH cougar mascot) cage.

These were the beginnings of Raj Syal’s experiments with social service, which eventually led to the creation of the India Culture Center and in subsequent years, as the community began to grow rapidly, to other events to bring those who yearned for the old country together. His spirit never diminished, even as he grew older, to rejoice in the luster of Indian culture, his Punjabi roots and Hindu religion, as he went on to jump-start other institutions that outlast him.

After several years of declining health, Raj Syal finally breathed his last on Thursday, October 1, at his home, surrounded by his family. He was 86. He is survived by his wife Krishna, children Anju, Rajinder (wife Georgiana), Rupinder and grandsons Krishan (wife Chandler) and Daniel.

“My grandfather was a lot of things to the Houston community,” reflected his eldest grandson Krishan James Syal, “ – a leader, role model and mentor – but to me he was just Baba, a caring grandfather, my biggest supporter and the center of our family.”

His brother Daniel Kumar Syal, who, like his grandfather, graduated from Tulane in 2018, echoed the sentiment. “Baba never allowed his education or fierce intelligence to corrupt his natural humbleness,” he said.  “He forged a vibrant community in a strange country through the strength of his character and his commitment to preserving his heritage. He was a rare man and should serve as an example for future immigrants who wish to become Americans while also preserving their distinct traditions.”

Raj Kumar Syal was born on May 7, 1934 in village Bilga, District Jullunder in the Punjab, India and lost his parents at an early age and was, with his older brother, raised by his grandparents. He received an associate degree in engineering in 1958 and then came to Tulane University in 1963 but earned his civil engineering degree at Texas A&M University.

Two years later, his wife Krishna and two kids Anju and Rajinder followed and the family moved to the Houston area in Lamarque in February 1965 after Syal began working for the Texas Highway Department. Ever conscious of self-improvement, Syal received his masters in civil engineering from the University of Houston in 1970. Syal worked at the THD for 45 years till his retirement in 2011. After his moved to The Woodlands, the Syals followed suit and shifted there in 1999.

Syal was a man burning with a desire to hold true to his faith, culture and humble beginnings and sought out like-minded people to knit what he perceived would be a growing Indian community in a dominant Anglo-Saxon culture. At first, he helped start a Sikh Gurdwara in the Southeast side of the metropolitan area.

Then he invested both time and money in the India Culture Center, eventually buying a small house on Cypress Street near Beechnut and Hillcroft (across from the Vedanta Society formed by Dr. K. L. Sindwani, the founder of Indo American News) to serve as its headquarters. He would often go there and cut the grass and do other landscaping (and at times this reporter would help).

No task for the community was ever too small or menial or time consuming, whatever the time of day, a fact that his wife Krishna and kids (who now included the youngest son Rupinder) had to learn to live with. She would tag along to Houston, 35 miles away from home, and sometimes the kids would have to bring their homework with them to finish while Raj Syal finished his tasks.

It was a sense of commitment and being true to his word that made Raj Syal such a dependable commodity when the community needed someone to shoulder the weight.

Along with others like Shyam Talwar and his wife Tara and Gopal Rana (another tireless worker) and his wife Kumud, Syal realized that the Hindu identity needed a place to reflect and helped found the regions first temple, the Hindu Worship Society on Wirtcrest Road on the near westside.

Some years later, recognizing that the Hindu community was fragmented across the metroplex, Syal pushed for holding the area’s first Janamashtami program at the George R. Brown Convention Center and subsequently, after it was deemed a success, forming the Hindus of Greater Houston, a non-profit that endures and speaks for the area’s Hindus and continues to hold the festival each year. He even organized the city’s first fireworks display downtown for Janamashtami.

For all his efforts, the HGH awarded Ray Syal a lifetime achievement award on the 25th anniversary of the Janamashtami event in 2014. But Syal, who had a naturally charming and innocent manner and a ready smile on his cherubic face, was not one who sought out honors.

In fact, he would often run from the limelight, and was never given to long speeches. His congenial manner of sublimating and cajoling made the strength of his convictions had to resist.

As he would often say at the tail end of a meeting, with a slight wave and bow, “chalo, wekhi jaiyigi. Let’s see!” and if all else failed, you’d see him personally taking care to make events work.