The United States Postal Service on Tuesday announced that it would release a special stamp commemorating the Hindu festival of Diwali.

The postal department’s latest release will end Indian-American community’s 12-year long wait for a stamp honoring the Hindu festival of lights.

Consul General of India Ambassador Riva Ganguly Das, Rep. Carolyn B. Maloney who spearheaded the campaign for Diwali stamp along with Chair of the Diwali Stamp Project Ranju Batra, and members of the Indian diaspora unveiled the Diwali stamp at the City Hall steps, in Manhattan. The first-day-of-issue dedication ceremony will, however, be held at the Indian Embassy in New York City on October 5.

“Today, history changes; as Diwali finally joins Christmas, Kwanzaa, Hanukkah and Eid to have its own stamp,” Batra, who along with other members of the Indian-American community initiated a grassroots campaign in 2010 collecting petitions for the commemorative stamp, said.

The stamp design, unveiled by the USPS, is a photograph featuring a diya lit in a sparkling gold background.

Sally Andersen-Bruce of New Milford, Connecticut, is responsible for photographing other holiday stamp and shot the image of the diya or lamp. Greg Breeding of Charlottesville, Virginia, designed the stamp and William J. Gicker of Washington, DC, was the project’s art director.

The Diwali stamp will be issued as a Forever stamp and will be equal in value to the current First-Class Mail 1-ounce price.

For several years now, members of the Indian-American community, and their supporters have been demanding USPS to include Diwali to its long list of themes that have inspired stamp art. The first petition regarding this issue was sent back in 2004.

However, it’s hard for a petition to make the cut:

“The Postal Service receives approximately 40,000 suggestions for stamp ideas annually from the public.  Stamp subjects are reviewed by the Citizens’ Stamp Advisory Committee. Of that, approximately 25 topic suggestions for commemorative stamps are selected by the Committee for the Postmaster General’s approval,” Mark Saunders, senior press relations officer, said in the statement.

The call for a Diwali stamp grew louder when members of the Congress joined the fight to push the Citizens Stamp Advisory Committee.

Congresswoman Maloney introduced two resolution in Congress for the stamp. She even wrote to President Barack Obama calling on him to support the cause. Last month Rep. Tulsi Gabbard also launched a signature campaign urging the community to sign petitions.

India’s Prime Minister Narendra Modi, on his first visit to the United States, expressed his support for the stamp along with many Indian diplomats in the US.

So what’s the significance of a stamp in a society that uses less and less mail?

“A Diwali stamp is important because it would further validate the cultural significance of Indian Americans in the US,” Congresswoman Maloney said in her earlier statements regarding this issue.

Batra said the stamp sends an important message of religious inclusiveness. It serves as a reminder of the significance and contributions of Indian American communities.

“The inclusion (of the festival) does not matter as much as the exclusion does. There are stamps for every other major holiday, then why not Diwali?”

Aside from the cultural significance of the Diwali stamp, there are economic benefits associated with its issuance. There are over 3 million Indian Americans in the US. The sale of the Diwali stamp could provide the USPS with a sorely-needed revenue surge.