CHENNAI, INDIA, March 24, 2002: The chief minister of Tamil Nadu, Jayalalitha, launched the “Anna Dhan” program in 63 temples across the state today. Under this program, voluntary contributions will be used to feed the poor. She inaugurated the program this afternoon by serving food to 200 people at the Kapaleeshwarar temple. A hundi, offering box, is kept in each temple chosen for the program. The offerings put into the hundi will form an endowment fund, the interest from which would be used to run the program. More than US$2,100 was collected at the Kapaleeshwarar temple on the first day. As part of the program, temples will hold spiritual and moral classes on weekends. The CM said that if Christians had Sunday schools in churches, why shouldn’t Hindus have religious schools at temples?
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