Monday, Sep 20, 2004
Monday, Sep 20, 2004 |
| National | ||||
|
News:
Front Page |
National |
Tamil Nadu |
Andhra Pradesh |
Karnataka |
Kerala |
New Delhi |
Other States |
International |
Opinion |
Business |
Sport |
Miscellaneous |
Advts: Classifieds | Employment | National
By S. Vijay Kumar
Railway Minister Lalu Prasad and his wife and Bihar Chief Minister Rabri Devi with their children outside the Meenakshi-Sundareswarar temple in Madurai on Sunday.
MADURAI, SEPT. 19. The popular Lalu-Rabri couple were talk of the town when they arrived in Madurai by a special train this morning. Even though his party, the Rashtriya Janata Dal, does not have a significant presence in this part of the State, a large number of people had gathered to greet the Railway Minister, Mr. Lalu Prasad, at the railway station. They joined officials and trade unionists in welcoming the Minister on his maiden visit to Madurai. Accompanied by their children, Mr. Lalu Prasad and Ms. Rabri Devi offered prayers at the Meenakshi-Sundareswarar temple. The elephant calf `Parvathi' garlanded the VIP visitors who were then guided to the sanctum sanctorum.
Generosity
The Minister was generous enough when it came to making offerings. While he gave not less than a couple of thousands as `dakshina' for the priests who performed the special `archana', almost every hundi in the temple received at least Rs. 500. This was not all. After coming out of the temple through the west tower, Mr. Prasad generously dropped a hundred rupee note to every alms-seeker. The generosity was repeated at the Chokkanathar temple at Simmakkal en route the Circuit House. Later, flagging off the Madurai-Hazrat Nizamuddin Tamil Nadu Sampark Kranti Superfast Express at a function, he announced Rs. 1 lakh cash prize to the employees of the Southern Railway's Madurai Division.
Rest rooms for porters
When a woman drew his attention to her transfer petition, the Minister directed officials to look into the matter at the earliest. Turning to the porters, he said restrooms would be constructed for them, and free rail passes provided for them and their spouses. Away from the Bihar politics, the VIP pair continued their visit to pilgrim towns by proceeding to Rameswaram.
Printer friendly
page
News:
Front Page |
National |
Tamil Nadu |
Andhra Pradesh |
Karnataka |
Kerala |
New Delhi |
Other States |
International |
Opinion |
Business |
Sport |
Miscellaneous |
|
|
|
The Hindu Group: Home | About Us | Copyright | Archives | Contacts | Subscription Group Sites: The Hindu | Business Line | The Sportstar | Frontline | The Hindu eBooks | Home |
Copyright © 2004, The
Hindu. Republication or redissemination of the contents of
this screen are expressly prohibited without the written consent of
The Hindu
|
