Bhubaneswar: After the Maha Kumbh Mela, Adani Group will be offering seva during Rath Yatra from June 26 to July 8.
A company release said nearly 4 million meals and drinks will be distributed free of cost during the festival, when lakhs of pilgrims from across the country and abroad throng Puri to participate in chariot pulling ritual of the sibling deities of Shree Jagannath Temple as they embark on their nine -day annual sojourn.
“For the Adani Group, corporate social responsibility has always extended beyond infrastructure, education and healthcare. Increasingly, it includes direct and active participation in India’s spiritual and cultural life — not as sponsor, but as sevak. In keeping with Chairman Gautam Adani’s deeply held belief that “Seva Hi Sadhana Hai” (Service is Worship), the Adani Group is undertaking a comprehensive seva effort to support both pilgrims and frontline officials during the Rath Yatra from June 26 to July 8,” it said.
There will be designated food counters providing free and nutritious meals to pilgrims and officials and beverage counters across the city offering cool drinks to beat the heat.
The group will also extend support to lifeguards of Puri Beach Lifeguard Mahasangha and volunteers for beach clean-up, especially plastic waste. It has commissioned 450 trained lifeguards to be deployed around water bodies and trouble spots to provide timely assistance and ensure public safety.
Free T-shirts will be provided to official volunteers, fluorescent safety vests to municipal workers; and also a variety of jackets, raincoats, caps and umbrellas for officials and devotees.
The release further stated that the seva effort is a collaboration between the Adani Group, the Puri district administration, ISKCON and local volunteer organisations. “The Group, which has been working in Odisha through the Adani Foundation across sectors such as rural healthcare, school infrastructure and livelihoods, sees this seva as part of a larger spiritual continuity in India’s public life,” it said.
Earlier this year, during the 45-day Maha Kumbh Mela, the Adani Group had supported food distribution and pilgrim welfare services on a massive scale in collaboration with ISKCON and Gita Press.