The Order on the March

53 The Vedanta Kesari January 2020 News & Notes from Ramakrishna Math and Ramakrishna Mission Guests of Honour

Sri Ram Nath Kovind, President of India, visited Vrindavan ashrama on 28 Nov. Governor of Meghalaya Sri Tathagata Roy visited the Shillong ashrama on 13 Nov. Sri Banwarilal Purohit, Governor of Tamil Nadu, visited Chennai Math on 19 Nov. Dr K Kasturirangan, Chairman of the Committee for Draft National Education Policy visited Belur Math on 7 Nov. Dr Bhushan Patwardhan, Vice-Chairman of the University Grants Commission, New Delhi, visited Belur Math on 20 Nov. News of Branch Centres

Gandhi Smarak Sangrahalaya, Barrackpore, presented the Mahatma Gandhi Memorial Award to our centre in Sargachhi on 2 Oct, in recognition of its service activities.

Bhubaneswar Ashrama began its year-long centenary celebrations with a two-day programme from 31 Oct. Srimat Swami Gautamananda Ji, one of the Vice-Presidents of the Order, inaugurated the celebrations. Swami Suvirananda Ji, General Secretary of the Ramakrishna Order, Sri Dharmendra Pradhan, Union Minister for petroleum and Natural Gas & Steel, 500 sannyasis and brahmacharis, devotees and admirers participated in the programme.

Srimat Swami Gautamananda Ji dedicated two new exhibits in theVivekananda Exhiition of Delhi ashramaon 12 Oct. The new exhibits are use virtual reality and augumented reality technology.

Sri Ram Nath Kovind, President of India, inaugurated the Sarada Block of Vrindaban hospital on 28 Nov in an impressive function which was also attended by the Governor of Uttar Pradesh Smt. Anandiben Patel and the Chief Minister of Uttar Pradesh Sri Yogi Adityanath and other dignitaries. The new state-of-the-art block houses MRI and CT scan facilities, two modular operation theatres, a cancer ward, and a number of other departments and facilities. Values Education and Youth Programmes

The following centres conducted value education workshops, conventions, camps, lectures etc:

Delhi Math:13 workshops in Ajmer, Delhi, Hyderabad, Kolkata and Pune (126 principals and 686 teachers);Haripad Math: workshops (553 students in 3 schools); Kanpur Math: Convention (240 youth);Koyilandy Math: Convention (70 s t u d e n t s ) ; R a j k o t A s h r a m a : 9 p r o g r a m m e s (682 students from 5 schools); Vadodara Math: Shraddha Tyaga Nirbhaya Pavitrata Satya Ahimsa Jiva Seva Desha Bhakti

Programmes in 11 schools (3755 students)

The off-campus centre of RKMVERI (deemed university) in Coimbatore Mission Vidyalaya held the 14 th Convocation on 9 November. 202 successful candidates were awarded certificates and degrees. Dr. Sunil Kumar Barnwal, Principal Secretary to the Chief Minister of Jharkhand, delivered the convocation address. Health Services

Aalo Mission held a medical camp at Humoli, a remote village, in which 60 patients were treated.Asansol Math conducted a blood donation camp in which 101 of its ITI students donated blood.Bajepratappur Math in Bardhaman held a medical camp in which 850 patients were treated, and a blood donation camp in which 84 people donated blood. Guwahati centre conducted a medical camp at Makaria village in Morigaon district of Assam in which 384 patients were treated. Kailashahar Ashrama held a blood donation camp on 2 November in which 64 people donated blood.

Swami Gautamananda Ji inaugurated the newly set-up MRI scan facility at Vrindaban hospital on 14 November. 17 centres in India conducted eye camps in which 12,991 patients were treated, 907 were given spectacles, and 1,798 were operated.

Commemoration of the 125 th Anniversary of Swami Vivekananda’s Addresses at the World’s Parliament of Religions in Chicago, USA

Bamunmura Math: Devotees’ convention attended by 365 devotees; Kochi Ashrama: Students’ Convention for 150 High School students; Mumbai Mission: A day-long programme attended by 900 college students and others. Justice Pinaki Chandra Ghose, Lokpal of India, inaugurated the programme, and Swami Suvirananda Ji and others participated. Lusaka centre in Zambia: A public meeting in which Srimat Swami Gautamananda Ji and others addressed a gathering of 83 people.

Relief Services

Flood Relief: In response to flooding in Katihar district of Bihar, Katihar Ashrama distributed 4000 kg chira (rice flakes)

Vrindaban

and 500 kg gur (molasses) among 1333 families.

Cyclone Relief: In the wake of the devastation caused by Cyclone Bulbul in North 24 Parganas, South 24 Parganas and Medinipur districts in India and in some parts of Bangladesh, the following centres conducted relief operations as given below:

India: West Bengal: Manasadwip centre provided shelter to 230 persons on 9 November and served cooked food to 7522 persons from 10 to 12 November. Sarisha centre distributed 23,360 kg rice, 5490 kg dal, 7100 kg potatoes, 1398 kg cooking oil, 1978 blankets, 3000 saris, 800 dhotis, 1800 lungis and 800 uttariyas among 1996 affected families in South 24 Parganas district from 18 to 21 November.Taki centre distributed 2000 kg chira, 750 kg sugar, 4032 packets of biscuits and 2160 candles among 2412 cyclone-affected persons in North 24 Parganas district from 12 to 17 November.

Bangladesh: Bagerhat centre distributed 1000 kg rice, 100 saris and 100 lungis among 100 families in Satkhira district on 15 November. Distress Relief: 21 Math and Mission centres in India and 3 centres abroad distributed: 16,778 shirts, 12,629 trousers, 5,461 saris and 1,335 dhoties.

Winter Relief: 13 centres in India distributed to the needy 2,732 sweaters/jackets, and 4,144 blankets.

Cyclone Bulbul Relief

Vol.107. No.1 The Vedanta Kesari (English Monthly) January 2020.

Regd. with the Registrar of Newspapers for India under No.1084 / 1957. Postal registration number: TN / CH (C) / 190 / 2018-2020. Licensed to Post without prepayment TN/PMG(CCR)/WPP-259 / 2018-2020. Date of Publication: 24 th of every month; Posted on 26 December 2019

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