Grand Re-Opening of the Sri Selva Vinayakar Temple

Mr Linus Power MP representing the Premier, the High Commissioner of India to Australia, all our elected representatives, distinguished guests, ladies and gentlemen. It is a great pleasure for me to be here today on this important day for Queensland’s Tamil community, and for the broader local community.

Today is the culmination of over three decades of commitment to meeting the spiritual needs of the Tamil community in our State. 

Twenty years ago, the first temple was completed on this site.  But a substantial increase in the size of the community soon meant that the building could not meet the needs of worshippers in the longer term.  

Today we celebrate the opening of the reconstructed Sri Selva Vinayakar (pron. Vin-eye-ah-karr) Temple, which meets those needs in generous fashion. 

I understand that the temple is recognisably Tamil in design. It provides a place of worship for many more devotees. It better facilitates the appropriate religious rites. And it provides a cultural and information centre for the community. 

This reconstructed temple is also a statement of confidence.  It tells of the confidence of the Tamil community, drawn originally from communities in South Asia and South East Asia, in the strong roots they have put down in Queensland – symbolised by the tree that was planted earlier.   

It reminds us of the confident contribution this community has made in enriching and strengthening our multicultural State, including Queensland’s important relationship with India, which I had the pleasure of visiting last year.

The new temple project was made possible by the energy and commitment of many in Queensland’s Tamil community.

Many substantial tasks had to be completed, not least raising the necessary funds, completion of the design, and bringing in artisans from India to supplement the work of local contractors.

In that respect, I offer wholehearted congratulations to members of the Hindu Ahlaya Sangam (pron. Uh-lee-ya Sung-gum), in particular the Management Committee, for their commitment to this project. 

I thank also the Logan City Council and all other organisations involved for their support for the project. 

And I join with the Tamil and broader Hindu community in our State in expressing the hope that the temple brings blessings and prosperity to the local region and to Queensland.

Thank you.