Nation celebrates 139th birth anniversary of the Mahatma today

New Delhi, Oct 2 (PTI) Mahatma Gandhi was remembered on his 139th birth anniversary Thursday with President Pratibha Patil, Vice-President Hamid Ansari and Prime Minister Manmohan Singh leading the nation in paying rich tributes to the messiah of non-violence.

U.P.A. chairperson Sonia Gandhi, Opposition leader L K
Advani, Home Minister Shivraj Patil, Defence Minister A K
Antony, Panchayatira Minister Manishankar Aiyar and Delhi
Chief Minister Sheila Dikshit also paid floral tributes at the
samadhi at Raj Ghat as the country fondly remembers the
Mahatma.

An inter-religious prayer meeting marked the birth
anniversary of the Father of the Nation at the samadhi, where
leaders, children, youth and women paid floral tributes.

The roads leading to the samadhi were decorated with
flowers. Heavy security arrangements were made for the
occasion.

Clad in white dresses and hats, people from all walks
of life thronged Raj Ghat to pay respects to the apostle of
non-violence.

Many people had taken their 'charkha' and 'takli' and
participated in the non-stop 24-hour collective spinning
organised on the occasion.

However, a tanker turned turtle in front of the main
entrance of Raj Ghat, creating embarrassment for the traffic
police. Three cranes were brought in to move the tanker. PTI