Canada India Foundation (CIF).

The Canada-India Foundation is barely a year old, but already it has the attention of the high and mighty in both countries. 

The objectives of the advocacy group are to promote "Indo-Canadians in the political process and national dialogue" and to play "an active role in educating Canadians about India and Indians about Canada."

About 25 Indo-Canadians business and professional leaders -- with Surjit Babara, president and CEO of SkyLink, as its president -- have come together to form this nucleus.

Corporate lawyer Munoj Pundit, the group's spokesman, said they have already met Prime Minister Stephen Harper twice. At their first meeting in Ottawa, he said. Harper "was very receptive to hearing what our objectives were and committed to working with us to advancing those objectives."

Their second meeting was part of Harper's round-table with GTA Indo-Canadian business leaders held at Swaminarayan Mandir in Etobicoke. Five charter members of CIF were part of that discussion group.

Their first major event is a gala dinner on April 18 at the Liberty Grand at Exhibition Place. The chief guest will be Dr. A.P.J. Abdul Kalam, president of India from 2002-2007, on his first visit to Canada.

Kalam, a nuclear scientist, is widely acclaimed as an intellectual who during his five-year term brought modern technology to the Rashtrapati Bhawan (President's House) in New Delhi.

Despite being a Muslim, Kalam is a Sanskrit scholar and knows Hindu scriptures well. Secular to the core, his candidacy for the presidency was proposed by the previous Bharatiya Janata Party-led coalition that was then headed by Hindu prime minister Atal Bihari Vajpayee.

At its April 18 event, the group will launch its Canada-India Foundation Chanchlani Global Indian Award, which carries with it a $50,000 donation to the charity of the recipient's choice, said CIF convener Ajit Someswar.

Sam Pitroda, recognized as father of India's IT revolution and chairman of the Indian Knowledge Commission, will be the first recipient of this major award.

The award is named after Vasdev Chanchlani, co-founder of the Toronto-based Sigma Group of IT companies. He has pledged $1 million to create an endowment so that this award will be in perpetuity. He has already sent CIF a cheque for $100,000.

For Chanchlani this $50,000 award is temporary. Left to him, he would like to progressively raise it to $1 million annually .

"I have always admired individuals engaged in pursuit of excellence," Chanchlani told me. "By supporting this award, I have the opportunity to show my further admiration of the excellence and global leadership of the (Indian) diaspora."

This award, he said, "highlights the leadership, excellence and (our) global leadership ... especially at a time when the whole world is watching and admiring India."

This advocacy group, Chanchalani believes, will be able "to influence public policy only if we create a visible presence for us (CIF and CIF members) in the public policy space."

CIF's 25 charter members include hotelier Steve Gupta, businessmen Anil Shah, Ramesh Chottai and David Singh.

It's a high-powered group of successful business people and membership is not cheap, with each pledging a $5,000 annual membership fee for at least three years.

And these people, with their 400 friends and supporters, will also pay $5,000 for a table for 10 to attend the dinner at the Liberty Grand on April 18 to welcome India's former president.