BANGALORE:

The Centre of Advancement of Culture, built by the International Society for Krishna Consciousness (ISKCON) atop a hill on West of Chord Road, was inaugurated by President Shanker Dayal Sharma on Saturday.

The architectural landmark, which wore a festive look opened its doors to the citizenry on the eve of the birth centenary of ISKCON founder A.C. Bhaktivedanta Swami Prabhupada. The President said that in spite of economic development, the spiritual needs of the people of the country are yet to be met. "ISKCON is rekindling the latent knowledge and awareness among our own people."

He said he was confident the new centre, better known here as the Hare Krishna temple; would help contribute to the spiritual progress of the nation especially in instilling the values of love, devotion, compassion and selfless service. His Holiness Jayapataka Swami, who oversaw the planning and development of the centre, asked the people to unite in the universal bond of love and tolerance.

Governor Khurshed Alam Khan, Chief Minister J.H. Patel, Minister for Medium and Large Industries R.V. Deshpande, BJP MP Ananthkumar, who represents Bangalore South, and Lok Shakti founder-leader Ramakrishna Hegde participated.