HYDERABAD, INDIA, January 10, 2006: Dressed in white and with his conspicuous locks tied into a knot like a sadhu’s, he stood out in the gathering of the Indian diaspora from across the globe. Acharya Brundavanam Partha Sarathi was among the delegates from Mauritius but his mission was different. Originally from the temple town of Tirupati in Andhra Pradesh, he was here to seek support for his mission – preaching Hinduism. It was in 1990 that Partha Sarathi left for Mauritius on the same mission. He is now chairman and head priest of Swamy Srinivasacharya Badarikashram, which manages a temple and a cultural centre.
He met Andhra Pradesh Chief Minister YS Rajasekhara Reddy and sought his support and the financial assistance of the Tirumala Tirupati Devasthanam, which manages the Tirupati temple, to set up a regional centre to propagate Hindu culture, learning and philosophy in Mauritius. The priest said the government of Mauritius had allotted 1.5 acres of land for construction of the temple in 1999. “We plan to install a 44-foot tall Hanuman Deity at the temple,” he said. The 220-ton Deity will be transported on a ship from Tamil Nadu and the project is estimated to cost US$455,000. Partha Sarathi said that last month a 24-ton Shiva Lingam. It was made in Tamil Nadu. “This project was completed with the assistance of the Mauritius government and the Indian community,” said the priest