PARRAMATTA will host the biggest Indian festival in Australia which will bring Hindus from all over the country and overseas.

The Festival of Lights brings out a mixture of emotions. PICTURE: MATTHEW SULLIVAN

The Festival of Lights, or Diwali, will be held at Parramatta Stadium on Sunday (October 11).

Last year the festival, organised by the Hindu Council of Australia, was held at Sydney Olympic Park and drew a crowd of 20,000.

Last week, Parramatta Lord Mayor Paul Garrard agreed to open the festival and to have a Happy Diwali low-voltage sign erected on the town hall for a week.

Councillors also voted to donate $5000 to the festival in acknowlegment of the large Indian population in Parramatta. Councillors believe recent unrest in the Indian community made the celebratory festival all that more important.

Earlier this year the world’s media was reporting on unrest among Indian students in Harris Park who had claimed they were targets for crime.

Cr Prabir Maitra, who represents the Indian community, said “it was in council’s interest” to support the festival.

“The organisers chose Parramatta because it is a central location and home to many Indians,” Cr Maitra said.

But while most councillors agreed, Cr Tony Issa said the council was trying to “create policy on the run” by donating money to the festival when there were “2000 different organisations in the city” also needing assistance.

“The organisers should have submitted a business plan and put it through as a major event,” Cr Issa said.

The Indian Festival of Lights is the most widely celebrated festival of Indians across the world.

Deepavali, or Diwali, means rows of lights, symbolising victory of good over evil, light over darkness, and knowledge over ignorance.

The Hindu Council of Australia, a national body representing the 150,000-plus Australian Hindus, has been celebrating this festival of lights for the past nine years on a large scale.