Ted Baillieu's Column

Salaam Namaste

Many of Victoria’s colleges catering for the thousands of international students, many from the Indian sub-continent, are in difficulty and at risk of closure.  The Brumby Labor Government has been in power for over ten years but has done little in that time despite the obvious problems, with the closure of nine colleges in the last six months throwing the plans of thousands of students into confusion.

Salaam Namaste

Shubh Nav Varsh to everyone in the South Asian community and I would like to wish all Victorians a very Merry Christmas and a rewarding, productive and Happy New Year.

I hope everyone has had a very enjoyable Diwali during October.  I can say that I have had a tremendous time and had the pleasure of attending several Diwali celebrations.  Diwali is now celebrated all round the world and I would say there is no place it is more enthusiastically celebrated than here in Melbourne.

Shubh Diwali and Eid Mubarak

We are coming into a very important and busy time of the year for the South Asian community in Victoria. The holy month of Ramadan has recently ended with the festival of Eid underway and Diwali festivities are commencing. 

Q: You’ve obviously had a long-standing interest in India and Indian issues. What prompted this latest visit?

TB: It’s not the first time I’ve been to India, I’ve been to India before, to Delhi. I went as an architectural student on somewhat of a pilgrimage and with a keen interest in architecture including traditional Indian architecture. But that was many many years ago. My wife was in India last year on a tour and loved it, and I was very keen to return for a number of reasons.