Massachusetts State Senator and Senate Minority Leader Bruce Tarr, acknowledged India's Independence Day at the State House, on August 9, 2012, in an informal session of the Senate (the Senate is on summer break).  In a ceremony, in Senate Chamber, Senator Tarr applauded the Indian community for its 65th year of Independence from the British and congratulated the Indian American community for their contributions to the Commonwealth of Massachusetts.

The ceremony was attended by Ms Kumu Gupta, President's Challenge Advocate (President's Council on Sports, Fitness and Nutrition, White House) and Anil Saigal Founder of Lokvani.com, an on-line emagazine serving the Indian American community in the  New England area.

At the end of ceremony, Kumu Gupta presented Senator Tarr with an India Flag pin as a patriotic gesture of good will.

Ms Gupta, who requested the state house ceremony, also upon request, was able to get a Governor's Proclamation again (earlier requested proclamation  in 2007) marking August 15, 2012 as India Day in Massachusetts and a citation commemorating India Association of Greater Boston's (IAGB) Golden Jubilee.  IAGB is a premier organization in Boston area that celebrates India's Independence Day at the Hatch Shell , an event that draws over 10,000 people each year.

Senator Tarr 's statement on the Sikh Temple shooting in Wisconsin:

I have been deeply saddened and troubled by the tragic shootings that occurred at a Sikh temple in Wisconsin. The intrusion of violence into a place of worship and peace offends our American values of civility and respect for all religions, and we can neither accept nor tolerate this type of brutal crime. We must seek and preserve the strength that comes from those values, and support each other in the wake of this violent incident.

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