Chavan sends Diwali greetings on cellphones

Mumbai, Nov 11 (IANS) Millions of mobile users in Maharashtra were surprised to hear Diwali greetings on their mobile phones from Chief Minister Prithviraj Chavan here Sunday.

On answering their mobiles this afternoon, the subscribers got a crisp and friendly recorded message on behalf of Chavan, wishing them all the best for Diwali.

It also carried a special message to curb noise and air pollution.

Chavan, who completed two years in office Sunday, urged people to light Diwali lamps instead of bursting fire crackers to prevent pollution.

“It was a nice gesture to get Diwali greetings from the chief minister. It has never happened before,” said housewife Minakshi S.K. of Borivli suburb.

The message was relayed to over 10 million mobile users in the state through the Environment Ministry and Maharashtra Pollution Control Board as a special public service, said an aide to the chief minister.

Last year, a similar message had been sent but on a very modest scale. Encouraged by the public response it got, it was decided to repeat it this year on a larger scale, the official said.

Besides Chavan’s message, the government has appealed to people to celebrate the festival of lights without indulging in noise and air pollution.

IANS 2012-11-11 17:10:13