Pune sets Guinness record as 38,233 diyas spell 'Vande Mataram' at Shaniwar Wada

Pune has entered the Guinness World Records. On Saturday evening, 38,233 diyas were lit together in front of Shaniwar Wada, and they formed the words "Vande Mataram". The Diwali festival of lights, held to mark 150 years of the national song, saw all the diyas lit in just 30 minutes.

The event was organised by the Pune Municipal Corporation (PMC). The idea was Mayor Manjusha Nagpure's. The corporation had set a target of lighting more than 36,000 diyas for the record, and the actual count went past that figure.

About 250 young volunteers lit the diyas. Many of them were Gen Z youth, who handled most of the work. Rows of diyas had been laid out in advance in the courtyard of the historic fort. When the volunteers began lighting them at the appointed time, the whole courtyard gradually filled with light and the words became clearly visible.

A Guinness World Records team was present. Its members inspected the arrangement of the diyas, watched them being lit and then officially confirmed the record. As soon as it was announced, the crowd applauded and raised slogans of "Vande Mataram" and "Bharat Mata ki Jai". An Army band played patriotic songs through the evening.

The event also paid tribute to the mothers and wives of soldiers who lost their lives on duty, who were honoured for their sacrifice and contribution to the country.

Minister of State for Urban Development Madhuri Misal, MLA Hemant Rasane, Deputy Mayor Parshuram Wadekar and Standing Committee Chairman Shrinath Bhimale attended. Additional Municipal Commissioners Omprakash Diwate and Prajit Nair, and Pune Cantonment Board president Brigadier Tarunesh were also present. Others in attendance included Colonel Vikas Sawalge, Colonel Shrinivas Katwalekar, Kaushik Kothia, Krishnakumar Goyal, Rajesh Mittal and Colonel Rajesh Kumar Jindal.

Mayor Nagpure said the corporation had decided to set a world record through the festival of lights to commemorate 150 years of "Vande Mataram". She thanked the Gen Z volunteers for making it a success. She also said that with such an initiative, PMC was the only local self-government body in the country to have set a world record.