New Delhi, Nov 18 : The National Integration Week will be observed in India from Thursday.

The National Integration Week is observed from November 19-25 every year to foster and re-inforce the spirit of communal harmony, national integration and pride in India’s vibrant composite culture and nationhood.

The occasion provides an opportunity to reaffirm age old traditions and faith in the values of tolerance, co-existence and brotherhood in a multi-cultural and multi-religious society.

The week would begin with National Integration Pledge.

National integration, welfare of minorities, linguistic harmony, weaker sections, cultural unity, women’s issues and conservation are the themes for the Week. Activities related to a specific theme would be under focus on each day.

The Union Home Ministry has decided to take all possible measures for dissemination and reaffirmation of these values among all sections of the society in view of recent developments in various parts of the country.

The Union Home Minister P. Chidambaram has written to different ministries under Central Government to organize the programmes and events befitting the occasion.

The National Foundation for Communal Harmony (HFCH), an autonomous organization with the Home Ministry also organizes communal harmony campaign during the week.

The observation of the National Integration Week would also help to highlight the inherent strength and resilience of the nation to withstand actual, and potential threats to the eclectic and secular fabric of our country, and nurture a spirit of communal harmony in its widest sense.(ANI)