NEW YORK (TIP): Sankat Mochan Hanuman Mandir celebrated the 66th Republic Day of India on Saturday, January 31, 2015. The celebration took off with a Deep Pragtya in front of the idol of Saraswati Devi with the appropriate puja by Pandit Sanjeev Mishra, the priest of the temple. Thereafter, the young children sang the national anthems of the U. S. and India. The stage was richly decorated and adorned with the Indian and U.S. flags. Mrs. Induben Gajwani, who has been very active at the temple activities, was the emcee for the event.

The primary object of the celebration was to educate the young Indian children about Indian history, culture and heritage. Several groups of children performed eye-catching Indian dances in their traditional colorful costumes. The dances covered different ethnic groups which symbolized the unity of nation and celebrated the day with the pride of being an Indian. Some children sang Bhajans and patriotic songs with great enthusiasm and pride.

Mukund Mehta gave a brief talk about the history of India’s Independence, Republic Day, India’s Constitution and how India is making progress despite India’s population of 1.2 billion with limited resources, limited infrastructure, growing number of regional states, multitude of political parties, different languages and various religions and sects. In order to captivate children in the talk, they were offered three prizes for giving correct answers to questions posed to them based on the talk.

The celebration was attended by hundreds of patriotic Indians and their rousing applause encouraged the young participants. The audience enjoyed every bit of the celebration. The huge Temple came alive with patriotic fervor throughout the evening. The participating children were awarded Certificate of Participation. The celebration ended with a delicious Mahaprasad