Deepavali Public Holiday, Subramaniam To Discuss With Sarawak Government

KUCHING, April 9 (Bernama) -- Human Resource Minister Datuk Dr S. Subramaniam said he will discuss with the Sarawak state government on the possibility of making the Deepavali celebration a public holiday.

"I will take it up with the state government. It's a national holiday but the state government here must accept it.

"The previous argument was that there are to many national holidays (in the state). That's the issue...we will look at how we can resolve it," he told reporters after meeting members of the Sarawak Indian Chamber of Commerce and Industry at the Sri Maha Kaliamman Temple, here Friday night.

Deepavali is not a federal public holiday in Sarawak.

Subramaniam, who is the sole representative of the Indian community in the Cabinet, said the government was making continuous efforts to uplift the living standard of Indians in the country.

"These include the economy, education, job opportunities in the government, skills training and scholarships. Under the leadership of Prime Minister Datuk Seri Najib Tun Razak, the Indian community has seen a big change concerning their wellbeing.

"Every citizen has a fair chance to progress. Opportunities are increased from time to time. Three temples in Kuching were given assistance during my visit this time and we will be discussing with the federal and state governments to provide additional allocations," he said.

He said from his observation, the vast majority of Indians in Sarawak were strong supporters of the Barisan Nasional (BN) and believed that they would continue their support in the April 16 Sarawak state election.

"I don't think there are other directions, they are with us," he said.

There are 1,805 Indian registered voters throughout Sarawak. Kuching has 1,008 voters with most of them in Batu Lintang.