The Hindu : Tamil Nadu News : Praise galore for proactive Consul-General

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Thursday, Jul 24, 2008
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Tamil Nadu

Tamil Nadu

Praise galore for proactive Consul-General

Sarah Hiddleston

Indo-American Chamber of Commerce hosts farewell dinner

CHENNAI: Visible, accessible, straightforward, fair. These were just a few of the many accolades heaped on David T. Hopper, Consul-General, Consulate General of United States of America, Chennai, by the Indo-American Chamber of Commerce members and other partners he worked with over his past three years at a farewell dinner hosted by the chamber on Wednesday.

Though Indo-U.S. trade has reached its zenith during Mr. Hopper’s posting and the number of South Indian companies in that equation has substantially increased, it was not this that members chose to stress. His engagement with social issues from the tsunami to corporate social responsibility, the improvements in the visa turnaround time, and his personal affability were commented upon time and again by IACC Chairman Hiren Shah, S.S. Badrinath, president and chairman emeritus, Sankara Nethralya, and Sunil Kumar Jain, former president of the Rajasthan Youth Association.

“He has been one of the most proactive Consul-Generals that Chennai has seen. He has not limited himself to political issues. He’s moved with all sections, be it commerce or NGOs. That shows his interest in India and in Chennai” Umesh M. Pujara president-elect, Hindustan Chamber of Commerce, told The Hindu.

That makes him almost as good an ambassador for India and Chennai as he is for the U.S., former IACC Tamil Nadu Chairman Shankaran Ragunathan pointed out, recalling his joyful singing of the Indian national anthem.

“The relationship between the U.S. and India is broad, deep and long-lasting,” Mr. Hopper said, paying tribute both to the IACC and the hard work of his consulate team. While there were many headline moments during his tenure, it is tsunami rehabilitation that will stand out for both Mr. Hopper and his wife Susan. And of Chennai, Mr. Hopper told The Hindu, it’s the balance between modernity and history, between technological advance and the art of Carnatic music or Bharatnatyam that he will remember most.

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