Chinamaya Mission pledges funds for rebuilding efforts
By:Josh Appelbaum
A Cranbury Neck Road Hindu ashram is focusing on rehabilitation efforts for Southeast Asia towns and villages affected by the Dec. 26 tsunami that has so far killed an estimated 156,000 people.
The Chinmaya Mission and Ashram, a Hindu educational and social organization located on Cranbury Neck Road, has launched a three-pronged response to the disaster coordinated by the worldwide Chinmaya organization. It will include honoring victims at religious ceremonies held at the center, relief aid and plans for long-term rebuilding efforts.
The mission has chapters throughout Southeast Asia, including Sri Lanka, Indonesia, southern India and Thailand areas most affected by the tsunami, which resulted from an 8.9-magnitude earthquake in the Indian Ocean.
Minakshi Sundar, who is on the ashram’s board of directors, said New Jersey members of Chinmaya have pledged about $20,000 for immediate relief. Mr. Sundar said the mission did not actively solicit donations. He said the organization plans more formal fund-raising efforts in the months ahead.
"In March, we will stage a musical performance which will raise money for the victims," Mr. Sundar said.
Mr. Sundar said the mission also dedicated its New Year’s service and prayed for tsunami victims.
According to Mr. Sundar, international relief organizations and regional efforts are effectively addressing the humanitarian crisis in the region, and the Chinmaya Mission will focus on helping victims rebuild their homes and restore local economies.
"We will offer long-term infrastructure support. In these coastal communities that were most greatly affected, fishing was the primary economy. Whole communities have lost their livelihood, so we will provide new fishing boats and help develop alternative means for work," Mr. Sundar said.
Mr. Sundar said he has been receiving reports from affected areas housing Chinmaya Mission chapters. He said there are eight or 10 chapters in southern India coordinating efforts for relief and rehabilitation, working with centers in Indonesia, including one in the battered Aceh province and Colombo, Sri Lanka’s capital and a major jumping-off point for regional relief efforts.
Mr. Sundar said a major area in which mission members in Southeast Asia are helping logistic efforts is in delivering aid to victims.
"We’re reaching out to the membership for logistical support, like the housing of relief workers, building new houses and establishing sanitation," Mr. Sundar said.
He said these efforts are similar to those launched by the Chinmaya Mission in provinces like Gujarat, India, which is still rebuilding from a Jan. 26, 2001 earthquake that killed 20,000 in the region.
Donations to the Chinmaya Mission Earthquake Tsunami Relief Fund may be sent to the Chinmaya Mission Tri-State Center Vrindavan, 95 Cranbury Neck Road, Cranbury, N.J. 08512. For more information, call (609) 655-0404.

