Finance Minister Arun Jaitley has said that the smallest community in India – the Parsis have never regarded themselves as minority, a mindset that has allowed them to emerge as a role model for others.<br/><br/>He said, Parsis mark a distinct thread in the tapestry of multicultural heritage in India and are a one rare community to be measured not by their number but their impact.<br/><br/>Mr Jaitley stated this while inaugurating the Everlasting Flame International Programme in New Delhi to celebrate multicultural ethos of Parsi Zoroastrian community.<br/><br/>The event has been organised by the ministries of Minority Affairs and Culture.<br/><br/>Mr Jaitley lauded the liberal and large-hearted Parsis for their contribution in diverse fields.<br/><br/>He said the community have preserved their culture and also exhibited the ability to reach the top.<br/><br/>Mr Jaitley proposed that the town of Udvada in Gujarat, where the Parsis had landed centuries ago, should be developed as a global cultural centre.<br/><br/>Prime Minister Narendra Modi had taken an initiative for developing the town when he was the Chief Minister of Gujarat.<br/><br/>Union Minority Affairs Minister Najma Heptulla expressed concern over the slow growth of the Parsi population.<br/><br/>She said that while she has worked extensively for population control, with regard to Parsis, it is otherwise.<br/><br/>She lauded the community saying the measure of its contributions is disproportionate to its size and it has never sought any favour from the government.<br/><br/>British parliamentarian Karan Bilimoria said Parsis are ahead of everybody else in terms of per capita achievements but this was possible because the community prospered in India.<br/><br/>AIR correspondent reports that three exhibitions have been organised in the national capital to showcase the multicultural ethos of the Parsi-Zoroastrian community.<br/><br/>The exhibitions take the visitors on a journey from the earliest days of Zoroastrian to its emergence as the foremost religion of imperial Iran.