New Delhi (Fides Service) – A national award in honour of Mother Teresa of Calcutta will be instituted by the Indian government to commemorate the spirit of the religious of the white Sari. The award will go to a person involved in social work which renders present still today the spirit and the mission of Mother Teresa.
The government was urged to promote the award by the Episcopal Conference of India which at the end of August proposed to the Indian prime Minister Atal Behari Vajpayee a memorandum with various requests such as to declare 19 October, date of the beatification of the Mother, a national feast.
As confirmed by government sources and the spokesman of the Indian Episcopal Conference Fr Babu Joseph, the project for the award went to port and will soon be official. The recognition will be assigned annually and it will consist of a donation of 2.5 million rupees, about 55,000 dollars, becoming one of largest prizes in India. It can be assigned to realities and
personalities committed the national level, but it can also cross frontiers and become international.
The jury will comprise government members and religious leaders and a representative of the Missionaries of Charity will also be invited.
In the meantime for the beatification of Mother Teresa the Indian public TV is organising itself to broadcast at least part of the celebration, while it is not known yet if a delegation of the Indian government will go to Rome after the official invitation sent by the Conference of Catholic Bishops of India. PA (Fides Service 3/10/2003 EM lines 25 Words: 244)