Personalia
Revered President Maharaj is at Belur Math. He is keeping well.
Swami Gautamananda ji is in Hyderabad and will return from there to Chennai Math on 5 February. He will then be visiting Belur Math from 20 to 22 February, Sargachhi from 23 to 26 February and Baghbazar Math on 27 February. He is keeping well.
Swami Prabhananda ji is undergoing treatment in Seva Pratishthan from 11 October.
Swami Suhitananda ji will be visiting Somsar and Bankura from 1 to 12 February, and Shyampukur Bati, Kolkata, on 15 and 16 February. He is keeping well.
Swami Bhajanananda ji visited Naora Math on 25 January. He is keeping well.
Swami Girishananda ji is at Balaram Mandir, Kolkata. He is scheduled to return to Belur Math on 8 February. He is keeping well.
Headquarters
The birthday (janma-tithi) of Swami Vivekananda was celebrated at Belur Math on Saturday, 14 January, with special worship, homa, devotional songs and music. Thousands of devotees attended the celebration throughout the day. Khichuri prasad was served to about 15,000 devotees. Swami Divyanandaji presided over the meeting held in the afternoon.
Communication Addresses
eMail ID:
The Foreign Contribution (FC) office at the Headquarters has got an email id <[email protected]>.
Websites:
Kailashahar centre launched a website: www.rkmashramakailashahar.org
Narottam Nagar centre has changed its website address from <www.rkmnarottamnagar.org> to narottamnagar.rkmm.org.
National Youth Day
National Youth Day 2023 Report and Photos
Belur Math (jointly with Saradapitha) and almost all our centres in India, including the ones listed below, celebrated National Youth Day (12 January, the birthday of Swami Vivekananda) with enthusiasm by holding various programmes such as garlanding of Swamiji’s statue, processions, youths’ conventions, speeches, music and cultural competitions:
Aalo, Advaita Ashrama (Kolkata), Ahmedabad, Almora, Antpur, Asansol, Aurangabad, Bagda, Baghbazar (Kolkata), Bajepratappur (Bardhaman), Balaram Mandir (Kolkata), Bankura, Baranagar Mission (Kolkata), Barasat, Basavanagudi (Bengaluru), Belagavi, Bhubaneswar, Bhuj, Bolpur, Chandigarh, Chandipur, Chapra, Chengalpattu, Chengam, Chennai Math, Chennai Mission Ashrama, Coimbatore Math, Coimbatore Mission, Cooch Behar, Cossipore (Kolkata), Davanagere, Delhi, Deoghar, Digboi, Gadadhar Ashrama (Kolkata), Garbeta, Ghatshila, Goa, Gol Park (Kolkata), Gurap, Guwahati, Gwalior, Halasuru (Bengaluru), Hatamuniguda, Hyderabad, Imphal, Indore, Itanagar, Jaipur, Jammu, Jamshedpur, Jamtara, Jhargram, Kadapa, Kalady, Kamarpukur, Kankhal, Kankurgachhi (Kolkata), Karimganj, Kasundia (Howrah), Kathamrita Bhavan (Kolkata), Katihar, Khetri, Kochi, Koyilandy, Kozhikode, Krishnanagar, Lalgarh, Limbdi, Lucknow, Lumdung, Madihalli, Madurai, Malda, Malliankaranai, Manasadwip, Mangaluru, Medinipur, Mumbai, Muzaffarpur, Nabadwip, Nagpur, Naora, Narainpur, Narendrapur, Narottam Nagar, Nattarampalli, Ootacamund, Patna, Ponnampet, Porbandar, Port Blair, Prayagraj, Pune, Puri Mission, Purnea, Rahara, Raipur, Rajamahendravaram, Rajkot, Ramanathapuram, Ranchi Morabadi, Ranchi Sanatorium, Rishikesh, Rourkela, Sahudangi, Salem, Saradapitha (Belur), Seva Pratishthan (Kolkata), Shillong, Shimla, Shyamla Tal, Silchar, Sinthi, Somsar, Swamiji’s Ancestral House (Kolkata), Taki, Thanjavur, Thiruvalla, Thiruvananthapuram, Thrissur, Tirupati, Vadodara, Vijayawada, Visakhapatnam, Viveknagar (Agartala) and Vrindaban.
The following programmes deserve to be specially noted:
At Bhubaneswar centre, Sri Pratap Chandra Sarangi, Member of Parliament; Smt Sulochana Das, Mayor of Bhubaneswar; and many other dignitaries took part in the celebration.
In the programme held at Kankhal Sevashrama, Swami Avadheshananda Giri, Mahamandaleshwar of Juna Akhara; Sri Prem Chand Agarwal, Finance and Urban Development Minister, Government of Uttarakhand; Dr Ramesh Pokhriyal “Nishank”, Member of Lok Sabha; and others addressed the audience.
Sri Chandrakant Patil, Minister for Higher and Technical Education, Government of Maharashtra, inaugurated a two-day youths’ convention at Pune Math. About 500 youths took part in the convention held on 12 and 13 January.
Ranchi Morabadi Ashrama conducted a prize distribution ceremony in which Sri Ramesh Bais, Governor of Jharkhand, and other dignitaries took part. In collaboration with the Department of Sports and Culture, Government of Jharkhand, the Ashrama held a programme at Swami Vivekananda Sarovar in Ranchi. Mr Hafizul Hasan, Minister for Tourism and Culture, Government of Jharkhand, was the chief guest in that programme. The Ashrama also held six programmes in rural parts of Jharkhand.
At Shillong centre, Sri Rajeev Chandrasekhar, Minister of State for Skill Development and Entrepreneurship and Minister of State for Electronics and Information Technology, Government of India, took part in the celebration.
Several dignitaries and about 35,000 people visited Swamiji’s Ancestral House where a day-long programme was held on 12 January.
Vadodara centre held lectures and exhibitions in 24 educational institutions in five districts of Gujarat from 31 December to 23 January which were attended by a total of 7230 students.
In the celebration at Viveknagar centre, Agartala, Sri T Amarnath Goud, Chief Justice of Tripura, and Ms Pratima Bhoumik, Union Minister of State for Social Justice and Empowerment, and others addressed the gathering.
The following centres held cultural competitions on a large scale:
| Sl. | Centre | No. of students participated |
| 1. | Chandigarh | 3000 students from 16 schools of Haryana and Chandigarh |
| 2. | Chennai Math | 1653 students from 17 schools |
| 3. | Muzaffarpur | 4300 students from 27 institutions |
| 4. | Nagpur | 2894 students from 39 schools in 31 villages |
| 5. | Ranchi Morabadi | 70,224 students from all 24 districts of Jharkhand |
Commemoration of the 125th Anniversary of the Ramakrishna Mission
The following centres conducted programmes mentioned against their names:
India
Advaita Ashrama, Kolkata: The centre brought out a special issue of Prabuddha Bharata magazine in January. The special issue is titled ‘Ramakrishna Mission: A Perennial Source of Inspiration’.
Asansol: A special lecture on 21 January attended by 400 devotees and hostel students.
Barisha: A devotees’ convention on 22 January attended by 900 people.
Basavanagudi, Bengaluru: Swami Suhitanandaji presided over a commemorative programme on 9 January which comprised lectures and a film show. It was attended by 600 devotees.
Chengam: A commemorative programme on 22 January which was attended by 300 people, mostly students and teachers.
Hatamuniguda: A theatrical presentation on Swami Vivekananda by the students of the centre’s school on 23 January.
Jhargram: A Ratha Yatra all over Jhargram district from 11 to 20 December. The Ratha travelled 1200 km and was received at 156 places. A total of about 50,000 people participated in the processions and public meetings.
Kasundia, Howrah: A devotees’ convention on 22 January attended by 600 people.
Viveknagar, Agartala: A day-long devotees’ convention on 8 January which was attended by about 1000 people.
Bangladesh
Bagerhat: A special discourse on 3 January.
News of Branch Centres (in India)
On 1 January, Swami Suhitanandaji inaugurated the newly built classrooms at the high school run by Visakhapatnam centre.
A bronze statue of Swami Vivekananda in Hasnabad area, installed on the initiative of Taki centre, was unveiled on 4 January by Sri Partha Bhowmick, Minister of Irrigation and Waterways, Government of West Bengal, in the presence of the General Secretary, a few MLAs and other dignitaries. The General Secretary spoke on the occasion.
Porbandar centre celebrated its silver jubilee from 7 to 10 January with a series of programmes that included a youths’ convention, a spiritual retreat, a public meeting, devotional music and discourses. A commemorative volume was also released on the occasion. In all, 1350 people attended the programmes.
Sri Bratya Basu, Minister for Education, Government of West Bengal, inaugurated the Centre for Human Excellence and Social Sciences, at New Town centre (Viveka Tirtha), Kolkata, on 11 January. Revered President Maharaj, Swami Gautamanandaji, Swami Suhitanandaji, Swami Bhajananandaji, the General Secretary and others attended the programme. On the same day, the following units were also inaugurated: (1) a yoga hall and a meditation hall by Revered President Maharaj, (2) a computer centre by Swami Gautamanandaji, and (3) a state-of-art book showroom by Swami Suhitanandaji.
On the occasion of the Gangasagar Mela, Seva Pratishthan hospital extended round-the-clock medical service on the Mela grounds from 10 to 16 January. In all, 8268 patients were treated, out of which 233 received indoor medical care. Manasadwip centre provided board and lodging to 548 pilgrims at its unit in Gangasagar. The centre also took part in the religious programmes arranged by the local administration.
Baghbazar centre, Kolkata, observed the 125th year of publication of its Bengali magazine Udbodhan at Girish Mancha, a nearby public auditorium, on 15 January. The General Secretary, a few distinguished monks and an eminent Bengali litterateur addressed the gathering consisting of 900 devotees. A commemorative book and a special issue of the magazine were also released on the occasion. The programme ended with a classical music performance.
A statue of Swami Vivekananda was unveiled on the ITI campus of Asansol centre on 21 January.
Narainpur Ashrama inaugurated a middle school building at its Kachchapal tribal development centre on 22 January.
As part of its year-long golden jubilee celebrations, Narottam Nagar centre held a public meeting on 23 January, the sacred birthday of Swami Brahmanandaji Maharaj. The General Secretary, Deputy Chief Minister of Arunachal Pradesh Sri Chowna Mein, State Minister for Public Health Engineering and Water Supply Sri Wangki Lowang, a few MLAs, senior government officials, including the State Chief Secretary, and about 2000 devotees and admirers took part in the celebration. On this occasion, a twelve-foot statue of Bhagavan Buddha was unveiled on the centre’s campus.
Deoghar Vidyapith concluded its year-long centenary celebration with a public meeting on 28 January. Swami Girishanandaji presided over the meeting which was addressed by two judges, the local MLA and a few other dignitaries. In this connection, cultural programmes and other events were held on the previous two days.
The Narendrapur off-campus centre of RKMVERI (deemed university) was adjudged the ‘Best Centre of All India Network Programme on Organic Farming’ by the Indian Council of Agricultural Research (ICAR) – Indian Institute of Farming Systems Research, Modipuram, Meerut.
Two doctors attached to Seva Pratishthan hospital received the best paper and the best poster prizes at the All India Congress of Obstetrics and Gynaecology held in Kolkata from 4 to 8 January.
A student of our Jhargram school secured a silver medal in the high jump event and another student a bronze medal in the running race at the National Meet of the Eklavya Model Residential Schools held in Guntur, Andhra Pradesh, from 17 to 22 December.
A student of class 3 of our Imphal school won a gold medal in the National Archery Championship held at Vijayawada from 7 to 16 January.
Twenty-one students of class 11 of Narendrapur Vidyalaya received the Junior Scholarship Award and six others obtained the Junior Encouragement Award in the Junior Scholarship Test, 2022, conducted by Jagadish Bose National Science Talent Search, Kolkata. Further, the Vidyalaya won the Best School Award for the excellent performance of its students in the competition. Students of Rahara school also took part in the same competition and won six Junior Scholarship Awards. Besides, the school won the Special Award.
A new lift installed at the old-age home of Barisha centre was inaugurated on 11 January.
The upgraded dentistry department at Kankhal Sevashrama was inaugurated on 12 January.
Values Education and Youth Programmes
The following centres held programmes mentioned against their names:
Barasat: A day-long youths’ convention on 8 January in which 950 youth delegates and 50 others took part.
Belagavi: (i) Eighteen values education programmes at the centre and elsewhere from 3 December to 25 January which were attended by 3028 students, and (ii) a residential workshop for college students from 19 to 22 January in which 47 students took part.
Chengam: A values education programme on 5 January attended by 165 students and 9 teachers.
Chennai Math: A two-day workshop on life skills and values education at Vivekananda Cultural Centre on 25 and 27 January. In all, 200 teacher trainees from a college in Chennai took part in the workshop.
Coimbatore Mission: Two two-day teachers’ conventions from 26 to 29 December which were attended in all by 104 teachers from two schools in Tirupur and Chengalpattu.
Delhi: 17 workshops on values education in offline mode and 4 in online mode, from 28 November to 25 January. In all, 1096 school headmasters, teachers and others from different parts of India participated in these workshops.
Gourhati: A students’ convention on 16 January in which 590 students and 30 teachers from 15 schools took part.
Mangaluru: Three symposiums – for teachers and teacher trainees on 19 January, for students of postgraduate and professional courses on 20 January, and for lecturers and professors on 21 January. In all, about 1800 people participated in the conclaves.
Nabadwip: A youths’ conference on 22 January attended by 140 delegates.
Raipur: (i) A personality development camp at a college in Bemetara district on 3 January, attended by 350 students and 15 teachers, and (ii) A youths’ convention on the centre’s premises on 6 January which was attended by 175 students and 10 teachers.
Eye Camps and Medical Camps
The following centres conducted medical camps. A summary of the services provided by them is given below.
Belagavi: 365 eye patients were screened and 176 were operated on in December and January.
Chennai Math: An eye camp in Kaliyapettai village, Chengalpattu district, through Chengalpattu centre, on 1 January in which 81 patients were treated, 6 were operated on for cataract, and 51 spectacles were distributed.
Coimbatore Mission: Eight medical camps (2 ENT, 2 dental, 1 eye, 1 cardiology and 2 general camps) in rural and tribal areas of Coimbatore district from 24 December to 22 January in which a total of 506 patients were treated.
Delhi: Eye operations on 76 patients and distribution of spectacles to 40 patients in November and December.
Deoghar: A blood donation camp, in collaboration with Indian Red Cross Society, on 27 January in which 118 units of blood were collected.
Garbeta: Eye operations on 225 patients and distribution of spectacles to them from January to December 2022.
Jamshedpur: (i) Two eye camps on 29 December and 10 January in which a total of 102 patients were screened and 58 patients were operated on, and (ii) A blood donation camp on 12 January in which 139 persons donated blood.
Kamarpukur: 283 eye patients were checked, 182 were operated on and 68 were given spectacles in January.
Kankhal: A dental camp on 12 January in which about 100 patients were treated.
Kanpur: A medical camp at Barra, Damodar Nagar, Kanpur, on 29 December in which 121 patients were treated.
Khetri: 35 eye patients were screened and 11 were operated on for cataract in January.
Lucknow: 10,374 eye patients were checked and 638 were operated on and given spectacles in December.
Madurai: An eye camp on 18 January – 121 patients were screened, 38 underwent cataract surgery and 22 were given spectacles.
Medinipur: A medical camp at Shiromani in Paschim Medinipur district on 23 January in which 8 specialist doctors treated 685 patients.
Mumbai: (i) 104 patients underwent cataract surgery from December 2022 to January 2023, (ii) An eye camp on 8 January: 272 patients were treated, 157 spectacles were given and 72 patients were shortlisted for undergoing cataract operation, and (iii) A medical camp at Zaap village in Palghar district on 22 January in which 193 patients were treated; 57 patients were given spectacles.
Naora: Eye operation camps on 30 December and 21 January in which 33 patients in all were operated on.
Rajamahendravaram: 629 eye patients were treated, 98 were operated on and 164 were given spectacles from October to January.
Ranchi Morabadi: Eye camps in January in which a total of 686 patients were checked and 18 were operated on for cataract.
Salem: (i) An eye camp on 29 January in which 50 patients were checked, 13 were operated on for cataract and 15 were given spectacles, and (ii) A medical camp on 29 January in which 282 patients were treated.
Shillong: A blood donation camp on 12 January in which 26 people donated blood.
Thanjavur: A medical camp on 22 January in which 40 patients were treated.
News of Branch Centres (outside India)
Sri Swapan Bhattacharjee, State Minister for Local Government, Rural Development and Cooperatives, Government of Bangladesh, inaugurated the new dispensary building at Narail sub‑centre of Jashore Ashrama, Bangladesh, on 18 December.
The new auditorium at Dhaka centre, Bangladesh, was inaugurated on 19 January. On the following day, Dr Dipu Moni, Education Minister, Government of Bangladesh, dedicated a new building for the centre’s high school. About 70 monks and 2700 devotees attended the programmes.
Obituaries
We record with sorrow the passing away of Swami Atmajayananda (Harold/Shanti) at Seattle centre, USA, on 3 January at 6.30 pm PST (4 January, 8 am IST). He was 83 and had been diagnosed with multiple myeloma some years ago. Initiated by Swami Asheshanandaji Maharaj, he joined the order in 1968 at Portland centre, USA, and received sannyasa diksha from Swami Ranganathanandaji Maharaj in 2000. He served the order at Portland and Seattle centres. He also had the privilege of serving Swami Vividishanandaji Maharaj, the then head of Seattle centre, during his last days. Atmajayananda had been living a retired life at Tapovan retreat of Seattle centre for some years. In his pre-monastic days, he was a good skier and participated in various skiing championships. He also played several musical instruments and was an avid photographer. A talented architect, he designed and built eight shrines at the Scappoose retreat of Portland centre. The swami was very friendly, helpful, and a welcoming presence to all those attending the services at Seattle centre during his long years there.