Amritapuri gears up for Amma’s birthday | | | India... http://expressbuzz.com/states/kerala/amritapuri-gears-up-for-amma’s-birt...

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1 of 3 9/27/2010 4:10 PM Amritapuri gears up for Amma’s birthday | Mata Amritanandamayi | | India... http://expressbuzz.com/states/kerala/amritapuri-gears-up-for-amma’s-birt...

Amritapuri gears up for Amma’s birthday Search Express News Service First Published : 26 Sep 2010 03:58:14 AM IST Site Web Last Updated : 26 Sep 2010 11:02:14 AM IST AMRITAPURI (): Amritapuri is gearing up for the 57th birthday celebrations of Mata Amritanandamayi. The Photo Gallery birthday celebrations will be held on the premises of the Amritapuri campus of the Amrita Vishwa Vidyapeetham. More than three lakh devotees are expected to attend the celebrations. A 70-foot-long and 40-foot-wide stage has been erected for the celebrations. The main hall sprawls over an area of more than 200,000 square feet. Arrangements have been made for drinking water to be delivered to the devotees, right where they are seated. Blood donation drive in More than 200 temporary bathrooms have also been Chennai erected in close proximity. More Galleries... More than 100 food counters have been arranged to cater to the devotees’ needs. These counters will be run by students from the various Amrita educational institutions. The students will also lead the team responsible for getting rid of food waste and litter. The 200-plus students from the engineering, biotechnology, MBA and ayurveda schools will be joined by more than 200 devotees from abroad. The birthday celebrations will kick off at 5 a.m. on Monday with the Mahaganapati Homam and will be followed by a Lalita Sahasranama Archana for world peace. At 7:30 a.m., Swami Tureeyamritananda Puri will light a lamp, inaugurating the birthday celebrations. A discourse by Swami Amritaswarupananda Puri, Vice-Chairman, Mata Amritanandamayi Math will follow. Mohiniattam dancers, comprising students from the Amrita Medical College, will usher in Amma on dias at 9 a.m. Sannyasi disciples will then perform pada pooja to Amma. This will be followed by Amma’s birthday address. Launch of welfare schemes At 11 a.m., Swami Amritaswarupananda Puri will deliver a welcome address. The Union Ministers of State Sriprakash Jaiswal, Gurudas Kamat and KV Thomas, and Opposition Leader Oommen Chandy are among the dignitaries attending the jayanthi function. Union Minister of State for Coal Sriprakash Jaiswal will present the Amrita Keerti Puraskar to Dr N P Unni, the former Vice-Chancellor of the Kalady Sanskrit University. Amrita Sree Insurance Scheme, a joint-venture between the Math and LIC will be launched for Amritha Sree members numbering over one lakh women. Union Minister of State for IT Gurudas Kamat will launch the scheme. As part of the Math’s on-going ‘Amrita Nidhi’ pension scheme, the pension amount given to destitute women and widows will be increased; more beneficiaries will also be given pension. Union Minister of State for Food K V Thomas will distribute the pensions to some of the new beneficiaries. The number of ‘Vidyamritam’ scholarships for poor students will also be increased. Cheques to the new beneficiaries of these scholarships will be distributed by Opposition Leader Oommen Chandy. The Malayalam translation of American writer Judith Cornell’s biography of Mata will be released. Two books published by Amrita Books as well as a Matruvani commemorative will also be released at the function. Launching of the ashram’s website in nine Indian languages, students oath-taking ceremony to assume responsibility for environmental cleanliness, mass marriage of impoverished girls, distribution of clothes to 25,000 women from impoverished families will also be held. These programs will be followed by Amma’s darshan. American rap artist, Doug E Fresh, will add a touch of variety to the cultural programmes to be presented as part of the jayanthi celebrations.

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2 of 3 9/27/2010 4:10 PM Amritapuri gears up for Amma’s birthday | Mata Amritanandamayi | | India... http://expressbuzz.com/states/kerala/amritapuri-gears-up-for-amma’s-birt...

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