The year was 1989; there were a handful of Sindhi Associations in some of the major cities in USA. The idea of an umbrella organization was conceived by Mr. Prem Lalvani who was the Director of Alliance of Midwest India Associations along with Mr. Kaloo Thadani. It took them four years to form the Alliance of Sindhi Associations of Americas, Inc. and secure the tax exempt non-profit status. Initially the Sindhi associations who joined the Alliance were from New York, New Jersey, Chicago, Washington D.C, Los Angeles and San Francisco. The bylaws were drafted and a constitution was approved.
The main purpose of the Alliance was to preserve and nurture our Sindhi traditions, language and values for the future generations, to have unity among Sindhis, to help our needy Sindhi students in India to get education and to help build Senior Sindhu Centers in each of the major cities in USA. To achieve these objectives, the organization needed collective thoughts, so was born the idea of Sindhi Sammelan, a three day event where Sindhis from around the country could come together.
The first Sindhi Sammelan was held in New Jersey in 1994, it was hosted by Sindhi Association of New Jersey. There were about 150 attendees. The second Sammelan was held in New York with a theme, “Investment in Youth” which was attended by 400 Sindhis from around the country. The third was held in Chicago in 1996, the theme was “Year of the Sindhi Women” and was attended by over 550 Sindhis. In year 2005 the Alliance held its 1st Sindhi Sammelan outside of USA. The 12th Sindhi Sammelan was held in Mumbai, India. Since then Alliance has held Sammelans in London, Jakarta, Singapore, Indore India, Ahmedabad India with the 21st Sammelan held in 2014 in Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia.
The success of the Sammelans in India, Europe and Far East countries prompted to shift the focus from American to a Global organization. In the year 2013 the Alliance of Global Sindhi Association was conceived. The organization has the same objectives and mission with a broader focus.
