Source: Aaj Tak Hindi News Channel UJJAIN, INDIA, July 27, 2001: A one hundred kilograms golden kalasam has been installed on top of the famed Mahakaleshwar Temple in Ujjain recently. Before installation, the pitcher-shaped spire was taken in a procession in the streets of Indore. It is reported that a business man based in Calcutta donated a sum of US$217,000…
Source: Aaj Tak Hindi News Channel MUMBAI, INDIA, July 28, 2001: Massive preparations are now underway for the annual Ganasha festival in this city. A big change for this year is the use of environmentally sound materials for the huge temporary Ganesha statues which are placed in the ocean at the festival’s end. The use of non-biodegradable building materials and…
GO TO SOURCE LONDON, ENGLAND, July 26, 2001: A condemning Amnesty International report on racism around the world has attacked India for its “hidden apartheid” against 160 million Dalits. “Despite the abolition by law of untouchability, Dalits continue to be discriminated against on the basis of their descent,” Amnesty said in its report, released the day Phoolan Devi was shot…
GO TO SOURCE DODA, INDIA, July 22, 2001: Police in Indian-administered Kashmir say that at least 15 Hindus have been killed by suspected Islamic militants in the remote district of Doda. The massacre on Sunday came a day after at least 13 people were killed when militants attacked Hindu pilgrims in Kashmir. The pilgrimage – which sees up to 100,000…
GO TO SOURCE ETA, UTTAR PRADESH, INDIA, July 25, 2001: Snakes are worshiped and offered milk on one day in the month of Shravan known as Nagpanchami. In this whole district of Eta, people carefully coaxed snakes from their hiding places and offered them milk. More cautious souls drew figures of snakes for worship. On this day a large number…
GO TO SOURCE ARIZONA, USA, July 25, 2001: Scientists Joshua Tewksbury and Gary Nabhan from the University of Montana and the Northern Arizona University have discovered why chilies are so hot, a question anyone first sampling a South Indian dish might ponder. They say the burning taste is an evolutionary ploy to stop mammals eating the pods and destroying the…
GO TO SOURCE SYDNEY, AUSTRALIA, July 28, 2001: A newly constructed Hindu temple, Mukti-Gupteshwar Temple in Minto, has been denied permission for public worship or social functions under a city council decision labeled as blatant racism. The Campbelltown council decided against allowing conversion of this massive “private” shrine for public worship. Mayor Jim Kremmer opposed the rejection of the application,…
GO TO SOURCE NEW YORK, USA, July 28, 2001: The Hindu Temple Society of North America (HTSNA), which oversees the operations of the Ganesha temple in Bowne Street, Flushing, New York, has been issued a restraining order and a show-cause notice by the New York State Supreme Court, Queens County, with a hearing date set for August 15. The driving…
Source: The Hindustan Times AMARNATH, INDIA, July 25, 2001: The collection boxes at Amarnath double up as mail boxes where pilgrims drop in their requests to Lord Siva. From the troubled housewife to the aspiring executive, these boxes get letters from everybody. And playing mailmen are the staff of the Jammu and Kashmir Bank who not only collect the money…
GO TO SOURCE DALLAS, TEXAS, July 22, 2001: For over ten years the North and South Indian congregation have worshipped at the Hindu Temple in Irving. Deciding that the building needed to reflect their culture, the devotees expect to spend US$2.1 million dollars in the next few years. The first significant addition is a gopuram in honor of Lord Ganesha.…