The Australian Hindi Indian Association has been part of Sydney's Indian community since 1994.
We are a membership association, not a business. Everything AHIA does is organised by members who volunteer their time, and the committee is elected by the members at the annual general meeting.
AHIA is an incorporated association in New South Wales. Its constitution, certificate of incorporation and annual documents are on file and available to members.
The committee is elected annually. Between meetings the office bearers — the President, Vice-President, Secretary, Treasurer and Public Officer — carry the association's day-to-day work.
Membership is by family, so a single membership covers a household. There are annual and life memberships, and a lower rate for seniors.
Members receive Sandesh, are invited to everything AHIA holds, and can vote at the annual general meeting.
We hold a meeting for our seniors on the second Saturday of every month, with a guest speaker, afternoon tea, and the birthdays and anniversaries we mark together. It has run this way for years and it is the association's fixed point.
We celebrate the festivals that mark the year — Holi in autumn, Diwali in spring — and we hold a picnic, a morning walk, and a community clean-up day.
And we publish Sandesh, the association's newsletter, in Hindi and English. It goes to every member family.