SourcePUNJAB, INDIA, September 6, 2004: In Kapurthala district of Punjab, Baba Balbir Singh Seechewal is popularly called the “ecological saint.” Seechewal is on a unique mission to clean up the 110-mile-long Kali Bein rivulet and shore up its embankment. While the state government couldn’t afford to undertake the task due to the sheer scale of effort and resources required, 42-year-old…
SourceUSA, September 2, 2004: Skipping Stones: the multicultural magazine edited by a born-again Hindu, Arun Narayan Toke, is suggesting that educators, schools, institutions and communities everywhere observe September 11 as a Day of Dialogue; a day to acknowledge and celebrate our differences! Writes Toke: When we listen to others, when we know their stories, they are no longer strangers. Becoming…
SourceBALI, INDONESIA, September 2, 2004: Our thanks to Ved Chaudhary for supplying the contact information (“source”_ for the upcoming Hindu youth summit in Bali: The website announcement reads: Dear Hindu Brothers & Sisters all around the world. On behalf of the national committee of World Hindu Youth Summit 2004 , please let us inform you that you can check our…
Times News NetworkCHANDIGARH, INDIA, September 2, 2004: Respected as rakshaks (protectors) of the entire country, many of them did not sport a rakhi on Raksha Bandhan (festival in which sisters give their brothers a colored thread to wear around their wrist, symbolizing protection and the bond between them), fearing it would damage the secular fabric of the Indian Army. In…
SourceMUMBAI, INDIA, August 30, 2004: With just over a month to go before polling day in Maharashtra, the Shiv Sena has found another issue to attack the Congress party- this time it is the alleged harassment of Bhajan mandals on Mumbai’s local trains by the city’s railway police. Shiv Sainiks sang the state song on a packed Goregaon-Churchgate local in…
SourceNEW DELHI, INDIA, August 29, 2004: Some 180 young Hindus from around the world will meet in the Indonesian resort of Bali in November to set up a global secretariat that will seek to spread the virtues of the Hindu religion. The organizers include two young Balinese Hindus who are now here meeting community leaders in India to canvass support…
SourceJAMMU, INDIA, August 30, 2004: The 45-day annual Amarnath pilgrimage concluded on Monday with saints carrying the holy mace of Lord Siva reaching the cave shrine in south Kashmir Himalayas. The charri mubarak, carried by around 500 saints led by its custodian, Mahant Deepinder Giri, reached the shrine, 143 km from Srinagar, around 0845 IST. A record 400,000 pilgrims undertook…
SourceHYDERABAD, INDIA, August 29, 2004: Eight suspected militants belonging to the Muslim group Lashkar-e-Toiba have been arrested in Hyderabad. The police claim they were plotting to blast the famous Ganesh Temple near the Secunderabad railway station during the Ganesh festival next month. Those arrested belong to the old city in Hyderabad and nearby districts. Police said they have links with…
SourceUSA, August 2004: It all started a few years ago with socially responsible investing. SRI became the catch word for investors looking into investing in mutual funds or the stocks and bonds of select companies. Expounding criteria such as we only invest in companies that do not derive any profit or a minute amount of profit from the tobacco industry,…
Religion News ServiceUSA, September 1, 2004: (RNS) Most Protestant ministers expressed little familiarity with the key beliefs of a number of non-Protestant religious groups, a survey has found. The findings by Ellison Research, a marketing research company in Phoenix, were first reported in the September/October edition of Facts & Trends, a magazine published by LifeWay Christian Resources of the Southern…