Earlier, Minister of Overseas Indian Affairs Vayalar Ravi, responsible for the organization of the annual Pravasi Bhartiya Divas, in his speech at the inaugural event for PBD 2013, said, “This is the centenary of the Gadar Movement when migrants from India settled in Canada and USA rose in their opposition to British rule in India, unmindful of the consequences in their love for motherland. Today is also a day to pay homage to them.” Later in the afternoon, Gadar historian and scholar Prof. Harish Puri, formerly of Guru Nanak Dev University, spoke for 45 minutes in a plenary session devoted exclusively to Gadar Movement.

The Hindustan Association of the Pacific Coast, known as the Gadar Party was founded in 1913 to free India from British slavery. The headquarters of the association was established initially at 436 Hill Street, San Francisco and named as “Yugantar Ashram.” Subsequently, a three-storey building at 5 Wood street was purchased with funds collected from Punjabi laborers. An electric press was installed for the weekly Gadar journal and other revolutionary publications to propagate and promote the aims, objectives and activities of the organization. Through the Gadar publications, the Indian people were called upon to unite and rise up against the British rule and throw them out of India.