For the First time; UN celebrates Diwali

The United Nations headquarters in Manhattan, New York for the first time is celebrating the Indian festival of lights, Diwali. This comes after it was declared as a non-meeting day and was recognised by the 69th session of the UN General Assembly through a resolution adopted on 29th December 2014. From 2016 onward, Diwali was made an optional holiday for the UN.

India’s ambassador and permanent representative to the UN, Syed Akbaruddin shared an image of the brightly-lit UN building and thanked UNGA President Peter Thompson on Twitter for the initiative. "Happy Diwali! UN celebrates Diwali for 1st time," Syed Akbaruddin, India's permanent representative to the UN tweeted.

Peter Thompson, extending the festival greetings, wrote: “Light over darkness, hope over despair, knowledge over ignorance, good over evil – the UN lights up. Happy Diwali!” The Sydney Opera House in Australia too turned golden for a night in celebration of the festival.