Allahabad:
Marking Valentine's Day, several spiritual leaders on Thursday urged people at the Kumbh Mela in Allahabad to treat the Ganga as their valentine everyday.
Chidanand Saraswati of Ganga Action Parivar, Sadhguru Jaggi Vasudev of Isha Foundation, Prem Baba of Path of the Heart from Brazil, BA Swami Paramadvaiti, a Vaishnavite spiritual leader from Germany, along with around 500 people from 45 countries took part in a song and dance programme for a 'Green Kumbh Initiative', said a statement.
"The Ganga must be allowed to flourish if India is to flourish. Everyone can do their part to serve the Ganga -- whether it is planting a tree, prohibiting plastic or picking up trash. Make Ganga your green valentine everyday," Chidanand Saraswati, president of Parmarth Niketan Ashram in Rishikesh, told the gathering.
Sri Sri Ravi Shankar of the Art of Living Foundation was also scheduled to take part in the event but could not reach the venue, the statement said.
In a message, he said: "We have always used the water of holy rivers like Ganga and Yamuna to purify ourselves, but today we have reached a point where we have to clean this water. Valentine's Day, a day of love, is a perfect day of coming together in the name of mother Ganga."
The Ganga Action Parivar, with NGOs, schools, institutions and the government, has started the Green Kumbh Initiative to beautify the grounds and environment of the mega religious congregation, said the statement.