Kollam: The 60th birthday celebrations of “hugging saint” Mata Amritanandamayi will begin here today with a three-day prayer for world peace. Amritapuri — an ashram complex with an adjacent university lining a green coastal stretch here — will witness the convergence of half a million devotees till the conclusion of the Amritavarsham60 celebrations on September 27, according to the Mata Amritanandamayi Math (MAM) which is organising the event.
The core part of the celebrations would span three days starting on September 25, witnessing the presence of experts from several fields, besides political leaders and performing artistes from India and abroad. The dignitaries will include former president A P J Abdul Kalam (on Sepember 25), Kerala Chief Minister Oommen Chandy, Gujarat Chief Minister Narendra Modi (September 26) and Uttarakhand Chief Minister Vijay Bahuguna (September 27).
The main project would be an MAM programme to adopt 101 villages across India with the intention of making them self-reliant role model villages. It would be launched on September 27. A decade ago, Amma had, on her 50th birthday, embraced thousands of people nonstop for 24 hours. Artistes from across the world will perform on all three days from afternoon till past midnight. IANS
