KOLLAM: A number of charitable initiatives were launched during the 64th birthday celebrations of Mata Amritanandamayi at Amritapuri near here on Monday.First to be rolled out was the Mata Amritanandamayi Math’s ambitious project to take care of the entire potable water needs of Pandari village in Jammu and Kashmir. The math has set up a system of pipes, overhead water tanks and pumps to ensure water supply to the remote village. Rajya Sabha Deputy Chairperson P J Kurien launched the scheme in the presence of Amritanandamayi.
Nine out of the 101 villages adopted by the Amirtanandamayi Math were declared Open Defecation Free (ODF) as part of the Swachch Bharat Abhiyaan. Representatives from the villages in Bihar, UP, Chhattisgarh, Uttarakhand, Maharashtra, Madhya Pradesh, Tamil Nadu and Kerala were presented with certificates by Kurien.The Centre for Research in Advanced Technologies for Education (CREATE), an educational technology initiative pioneered by Amrita University, had imparted basic computer training to tribal youths. As many as 50 digital literacy graduates were handed over certificates by Union Ministers Jual Oram, Y S Chowdary and BJP national vice- president Syam Jaju.
The event saw the roll out of of e-cylces for use in villages without electricity.
The specially designed cycles are fitted with dynamos and solar panels which can generate electricity for basic household needs. Out of the 1,000 e-cycles being readied for the project, four were handed over to the beneficiaries by Union Minister of State for Science and Technology Satyapal Singh. Certificates were handed over to 75 beneficiaries of the free surgery scheme of the Math by Karnataka Minister Pramod Madhwaraj, former Chief Minister Oommen Chandy, M K Raghavan MP and V S Sivakumar MLA. Over 1,940 free surgeries have been carried out under the aegis of the Math.
Amrita Keerti Puraskar presented
Mata Amritanandamayi presented this year’s Amrita Keerti Puraskar to president of the Sree Vivekananda Vedic Vision M Lakshmi Kumari. The award consists of a cash prize of Rs 1,23,456, a statuette of Saraswathi designed by artist Namboodiri and a scroll of honour. A team of 11 doctors of Amrita Institute of Medical Sciences were honoured by Amritanandamayi for carrying out Asia’s first upper arm double hand transplant in August.