Million Lights Campaign: 3,000 Girls from KISS Create Magical C20 Logo”

Bhubaneswar – On the occasion of the two-day C20 Working Group Summit on Gender Equality and Disability, hosted by Kalinga Institute of Industrial Technology (KIIT) and Kalinga Institute of Social Sciences (KISS), 3,000 girl students from KISS came together to create a stunning logo of C20 with ‘torch’ at KISS Ground.

The beautiful human logo formation is based on the idea of the “One Million Lights” campaign, which was launched on International Women’s Day, March 8th, 2023, to recognize and honor individuals and organizations that have made a significant contribution towards gender equality and women’s empowerment. Mata Amritanandamayi, the Chair of C20, had invited online nominations for this pan-world event to raise awareness about the subject.

The KISS girl students manifested the actions of the mantra of the Upanishad, “Tamas-oma Jyotirgamaya,” symbolizing the light of knowledge removing the darkness of ignorance and give a tribute to their lights.

Founder of KIIT and KISS, Dr. Achyuta Samanta, welcomed the dignitaries and spoke about how KISS has transformed the lives of 80,000 indigenous tribal students. “All my students of KISS are like diamonds, and we are shaping their lives with care, dedication, and zeal as I have realized that empowerment through education transforms the life of an individual, especially girls,” he added.

The Vice-Chairman of Mata Amritanandamayi Math and President of Amrita Vishwa Vidyapeetham-Deemed-to-be-University and Representative of the C20 Chair, Swami Amritaswarupananda Puri, was also present on the occasion. He was welcomed with a traditional tribal dance by the members of the sub-junior groups from KISS.