Every devotee is a VIP: 15,000 devotees are expected to visit the Ashram on January 1

Arrangements on in shrines, aurobindo ashram for new year: December 29, 2008 Puducherry, Dec 29:

Most places of worship and the Sri Aurobindo Ashram here are going ahead with arrangements to ensure that devotees from all over India find it convenient to offer prayers on New year day on january 1...

Aurobindo Ashram has also drawn up programmes to enable the devotees get into the ashram premises from 4.30 AM There would be mass meditation around the samadhis of Aurobindo and the Mother for half an hour from 6 AM. Recorded music will be played during the meditation. Not less than 15,000 devotees are expected to visit the Ashram on January 1. Ashram sources said no request had come so far from any VIP to the Ashram about their visits."Every devotee is a VIP"...

All lodges and guest houses are fully booked till Jan 3. Corporate houses have also taken a big chunk of accommodation for their people from different parts of the country. The increase in tourist inflow to Puducherry during New Year would be 15 per cent more than the usual turnout to this former French colony, an official source said. PTI