The three-day event involving the students of Veda Patasalas conducted by Om Charitable Trust, Chennai, met with an overwhelming response. Over 200 students from Tamil Nadu, Andhra Pradesh Kerala and Karnataka participated. They used the opportunity to display their talent, interact with peer groups and so on. The young and eager students found the occasion a stimulating change from the routine. The venue was Sri Ganapathi Sachidananda Ashram, Velachery, Chennai.
Prizes were given away on January 29 to winners of the competition held the previous day. The competition was held at two levels and the prize winners were decided by eminent Vedic scholars.
The function was presided over by Srinivasan Swamy, Chairman, R.K. Swamy Hansa Group. Dr. R. Krishnamurthy Sastrigal, Sanskrit scholar and Chief Examiner at the competition highlighted the greatness of Vedas. The function was preceded by Pada puja to Vedic Pandits amidst Vedic chanting by students.
The “Vedic Skill Development Programme” was inaugurated by H.K Choudhary, Director of Income Tax (Exemptions), Chennai. Efforts should be taken to get university accreditation on completion of Vedic learning by standardising the procedures at Patasalas, he said.
Team prizes were awarded to Raja Veda Kavya Patashala, Kumbakonam, for Rig Veda, to Veda Mata Patashala, Bangalore for Krishna Yajur Veda and to Jagadguru Veda Kavya Vidya Bhavanam, Chennai for Sama Veda.
Roll of Honour for the year 2012 was awarded to Shankara Gurukula Veda Patashala, Secunderabad. The competition was held in four sections in each Veda and students were awarded merit prizes in each section. In all 46 merit prizes were given away. The function was webcast live.
Students impressed with their talents at a show presided over by Dr. V. Ramasubramanian, Professor, IIT (Mumbai).
The aim of Om Charitable Trust is to encourage studies in Indian heritage apart from mainstream subject besides providing monetary help to those in need in the field of health and education.
The Trust can be contacted at 044-22447451 (Narayanan) and at 9884048960 (A.S.Kumar). The mail id is >omcharitabletrust@gmail.com and the official website is >www.omcharitabletrust.com .
