: Over 3.5 lakh people set a new world record on Saturday by singing the national anthem at an event at Kagvad in Rajkot, Gujarat.
The occasion was the installation of the idol of goddess Khodiyar at the newly-built Khodal Dham temple in the town.
“Over 3.5 lakh people sang the anthem during the idol installation ritual in the presence of observers from the Guinness Book of World Records,” said Hansraj Gajera, a member of the temple trust.
Broke Bangladesh record
Earlier, 2,54,537 people had sung the national anthem in Bangladesh in 2014 and set a record. That record was broken on Saturday, Mr. Gajera said.
“We received a certificate of the record from the Guinness Book of World Records officials,” he added.
The trust also set two new records for the Limca Book of Records by organising the longest (40 kilometres) ‘Shobha Yatra’ and a 1,008- kund mahayagna , he said.
Goddess Khodiyar is particularly revered by the Leuva Patel community.
Trust officials claimed that over 50 lakh devotees visited the temple over the five-day installation ceremony, which began on January 17.
VIP visits
The temple was built at a cost of Rs. 60 crore. The trust is planning to set up an agricultural university adjacent to the temple premises, Mr. Gajera said.
Many BJP and Congress leaders, as well as the Patidar quota agitation leader Hardik Patel, had visited the temple over the last four days, Mr. Gajera said.
