The sacred relics of Lord Buddha will be exhibited at Mulagandha Kuti Vihar, Sarnath, from November 3 to 5. The event coincides with the 94th anniversary of the Vihar, located at the site where the Buddha gave his first sermon, the Dharmachakra Pravartana.
The ceremony will be organised by Maha Bodhi Society of India, Sarnath Centre, in collaboration with the Venerable Vietnamese Sangha and devotees from Hanoi, as their support has made the exposition possible. The relics kept beneath the golden Buddha statue inside the shrine will be displayed, drawing monks, devotees, and pilgrims.
Renaming spree now reaches village level
After renaming districts, railway stations and cities, the UP government is now renaming villages. CM Yogi Adityanath’s decision to rechristen Mustafabad village in Lakhimpur Kheri district as ‘Kabir Dham’ has brought the archlights back on BJP’s move of blending religio-cultural identity with electoral calculus.
In 2024, BJP’s two-term MP and former Union minister Ajay Mishra Teni lost the Kheri Lok Sabha seat to SP. Mustafabad village with a population of around 3,000 people is home to a holy site dedicated to 15th-century Sufi ideologue Kabir Das.
Special security cover for bullion traders
In a first initiative in UP, Lucknow Police has introduced a special facility allowing bullion traders to call 112 for a Police Response Vehicle (PRV) escort while carrying large sums of cash or gold at night. The move aims at enhancing traders’ security and strengthening coordination between police and the bullion community.
In another first, a dedicated WhatsApp group will be created to enable real-time communication between jewellers and police for quick alerts and suspicious activity reporting. Moreover, police urged traders to get employee character verification done through the UPCOP app or via the official Lucknow Police website.
