Prime Minister Narendra Modi's 76th birthday was marked across Gujarat on Thursday with the lighting of lakhs of earthen lamps at more than 18,500 locations, along with blood donation and other public welfare programmes.
The celebrations were organised as part of the BJP's month-long ‘Seva Sankalp Abhiyan' and will also mark Modi completing 25 consecutive years in public office on October 7.
The Gujarat government had announced plans to light more than 88 lakh earthen lamps across the state as part of the celebrations.
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Under the ‘Aashirvad No Divdo' (Lamp of Blessings) initiative, programmes were organised across districts, municipal corporations, municipalities and local BJP units. Devotional music, satsangs and cultural events were also held alongside the lamp-lighting ceremonies.
In Ahmedabad, 1.25 lakh diyas illuminated the Kankaria Lakefront. Union Home Minister Amit Shah and Gujarat Chief Minister Bhupendra Patel joined the celebrations and performed an aarti of Maa Bharati, according to an Ahmedabad Municipal Corporation release.
Large crowds participated in the event, holding lamps and joining the aarti.
The Jagannath Temple in Ahmedabad's Jamalpur area also hosted a maha-aarti. Earlier in the day, Shah and Patel offered prayers at the temple for Modi's health and long life, as well as for the well-being of citizens.
According to the AMC, 76,000 lamps were planned at Atal Bridge, while another 4.80 lakh were to be lit across Ahmedabad's 48 wards under the ‘Aashirvad No Divdo' programme.
Lamp-lighting events were also planned at several major civic and infrastructure projects, including Narendra Modi Medical College, ACVP Hospital, AMC MET Dental College, Atal Bridge-Riverfront, Narendra Modi Stadium, the Metro project, BRTS, Veer Savarkar Sports Complex and Kharikat Canal.
The BJP also organised blood donation camps at the mandal level across Gujarat. In Ahmedabad, donation drives were planned at 10 locations, while free medical camps were scheduled at 14 locations, the AMC said.
Gujarat BJP president Jagdish Vishwakarma participated in programmes in Vadgam in Banaskantha district, including a ‘Yuva Samvad' and a blood donation camp. He also attended a programme organised by the Banaskantha District BJP to distribute notebooks and educational kits to children.
BJP leaders and ministers took part in celebrations at various locations across the state, including Ambaji, Olpad in Surat, Bharuch, Ekta Nagar, Mandvi, Gandhinagar, Rajkot and Bhavnagar.
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