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Dol festival celebrated in West Bengal

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Kolkata, March 1 (IANS) People in West Bengal on Thursday celebrated the spring festival, or Dol, with colours, songs, prayers and distribution of sweets.

Thousands of people from all age groups and from different corners of India and even abroad assembled at Birbhum district’s Santiniketan, about 180 km from the state capital, where Nobel laureate poet Rabindranath Tagore reintroduced Dol at the Visva Bharati university founded by him.

Scenes of mirth and gaiety were witnessed at Santiniketan campus, as people jived on the streets to the tune of popular Tagore songs that exhorted everyone to mingle in joy.

The festivities began at the crack of dawn. Students of Visva Bharati, accompanied by their teachers, went around the campus singing “Ore Grihabasi, khol dwar khol, laglo je dol” (Oh dwellers! Open your doors, it is Dol”.

The girls, resplendent in golden saris and garlands of fragrant flowers, and boys decked up in traditional kurtas, then took part in a song and dance routine at the football ground. The function ended with everyone smearing each other with abir.

“This year, the crowd was more in number than in recent years,” said a resident of the locality.

The curtains came down on the festivities in the evening, with the rendering of Tagore’s dance drama ‘Chandalika’ by the university students.

In the metropolis, Bengalis exchanged sweets and pleasantries.

As the morning progressed, the youngsters moved around their neighbourhoods in groups, throwing water missiles and smearing coloured powder on one another.

In parts of the state, the festival is marked by placing the idols of Krishna and Radha on a picturesquely decorated palanquin, which is carried by the devotees around the town. People dance around and sing hymns in joy, and spray coloured water and smear gulal on each other.

The International Society for Krishna Consciousness (ISKCON) observed the day at its global headquarters in Nadia district’s Mayapur, about 130 km from here, as the birth anniversary of Vaishnav saint Chaitanya Mahaprabhu.

Devotional songs and cultural programmes, discourses about the life and teachings of Chaitanya Mahaprabhu were organised on the occasion.

–IANS
ssp/tsb/bg

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Foodman Vishal Singh Honored for Hunger Free World Mission in Bangkok

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Lucknow: Vishal Singh, a renowned social worker from Lucknow, also known as Foodman, has once again made India proud. He was honored by the Happy Hands Gloves Cooperative Limited Company in Korathai, Thailand, for his work with the Hunger Free World Mission.

The Hunger Free World Mission’s meeting was held in Korathai, Thailand, under Vishal Singh’s leadership. Representatives from several countries, including Mr. Raja Dwivedi (Managing Director of Happy Hands Gloves Limited), Thailand Coordinator Mr. Raja Mishra, and member Mr. Varun Singh, attended the event.

Under Vishal Singh’s leadership, the attendees took a pledge to work together toward creating a hunger-free world.

Speaking on the occasion, Vishal Singh explained that the main goal of the Hunger Free World Mission is social participation. He said the mission is not just about feeding people but also about meeting other basic needs of those who are struggling. The mission focuses on helping families of terminally ill patients in hospitals by providing food and shelter. It also works to fulfill essential needs like education, jobs, and care for the elderly.

For the last 16 years, the Vijay Sri Foundation has been providing free services, benefiting thousands of people. Vishal Singh highlighted that the mission aims to gain global recognition like other organizations such as WHO, WWF, and Red Cross, which work for social causes.

During this meeting, Vishal Singh was appointed as the Chairman of the Hunger Free World Mission by representatives from various countries. They also discussed holding regular meetings in different countries to push the mission forward.

Business tycoon Dr. Abhishek Verma has also supported this humanitarian mission, vowing to promote the idea of “Seva Parmo Dharma” (Service is the highest duty) worldwide. Vishal Singh praised him, stating that people like Dr .Abhishek Verma inspire others to work for the betterment of society.

Recently, Romania’s Ambassador, Mr . Daniela Sezonov Ţane, invited Vishal Singh to the Romanian Embassy in Delhi, where they discussed the mission in detail. Impressed by his humanitarian work, she honored Vishal Singh and invited him to Romania to take the mission forward .

Food man Vishal Singh has been serving the people of India for the past 16 years. Through the Vijay Sri Foundation, he provides free meals to cancer patients & their families ,shelter, and education for women & children along with running free old-age homes in Lucknow.

In addition to his humanitarian work, Vishal Singh also addresses issues like crime and corruption through his role as Chairman of Seva Path Media and Managing Director of Vijay Sri Foundation.

During the COVID-19 pandemic, Vishal Singh and his team worked tirelessly to provide food and help to the needy, including starving children, elderly citizens, and pregnant women. Despite contracting the virus himself, he continued to assist others after his recovery. He even created a life-saving oxygen regulator using household items, which was praised by doctors both in India and abroad.

In his address at the meeting, Vishal Singh spoke about his mission to create a hunger-free world. He pointed out that India’s large population, along with issues like unemployment and poverty, has caused the country to fall on the Hunger Index. He urged people to contribute just one handful of grains daily to help create a hunger-free world.

He concluded by saying that through social participation, we can empower the people around us, meet their basic needs, and work together to build a stronger, more prosperous, and developed society.

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