Over 500 people gathered at Tividale's Shri Venkateswara Balaji Temple to witness the historic opening of UK's first Gandhi Peace Centre on November 12. A proud moment for the Indian community in the UK, the centre was inaugurated by Mrs Rajashree Birla, chair of the Aditya Birla Group. The centre, supported by Aditya Birla Group, is the first outside India. The inaugural event was hosted by temple trustees including current chair Dr S Kanagaratnam and founding chair Dr VP Narayan Rao, with support from West Midlands Combined Authority and the Indian Consulate General in Birmingham.
The centre hosts a permanent exhibition of Gandhi's life and message, told through interactive exhibits, video clips and rare photographs, yoga and meditation teaching resources and a library. There are also facilities of meetings, seminars, and practical activities to spread the message of peace and non-violence and foster community relations.
Sandwell Mayor Cllr Joy Edis welcomed dignitaries including Mrs Birla, Indian Consul General in Birmingham Dr Aman Puri, Lord Bhikhu Parekh, Lord Popat and Mayor of the West Midlands Andy Street. Also present at the event were mayors from around the region as well as representatives from the Gandhi Foundation and faiths across the community. Addressing the event, Dr Kanagaratnam thanked everyone present for their support towards the project. “I would, at the outset, thank Mrs Rajashree Birla, our co-host, for her dream, she impressed her vision and reposed her faith with Mr Gopi Hinduja and my predecessors to bring this centre to the divinely blessed grounds of Balaji temple, the first such centre in the UK.”
Andy Street said West Midlands Combined Authority (WMCA) was proud to support the centre. “It is so right that it should be here in the West Midlands, it couldn't anywhere else. The Mahatma talked of peace, reconciliation and harmony, exactly the principles by which we are trying to live and build a community that is for every faith.”
The mayor delivered a personal message from Prime Minister Theresa May, who said Gandhi's legacy had a particular poignancy in the UK. “His values continue to resonate and we are very fortunate to now have an exhibition of his life and lessons at the Gandhi Peace Centre,” she wrote. Gandhi scholar and award-winning author Lord Bhikhu Parekh spoke on Gandhi and Ahimsa as a way of life. The ceremony was followed by an entertainment and cultural programme, as popular Indian singer Mayaben performed songs requested by Mrs Birla, and Dr Deeraj Joshi from the Indian Consulate led everyone in a set of yoga and meditation exercises.
The centre is the latest addition to the temple complex, that opened in 1999. The 27 acre temple site attracts more than half a million visitors each year, including devotees, students and some 10,000 schoolchildren.
