Kolkata: The first outdoor statue of Sister Nivedita in England, installed at the Great Torrington family cemetery, was thrown open to the public on Saturday.
The dreams of thousands of devotees of Sister Nivedita came true following the initiative taken by Swami Suviranandaji, general secretary of Ramakrishna Math and Mission and Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee.
The monks of the Ramakrishna Order and the devotees were present at the function in England. Swami Sarvapriyanandaji, head of the Vedanta Centre in New York, chanted the hymns to mark the beginning of the function.
The state government has funded the 4-feet statue of Sister Nivedita up to the knee. It has been built by sculptor Nirjan Dey under the supervision of Swami Vishyamayananda.
Nivedita died at Roy Villa in Darjeeling on October 13, 1911. She was cremated in Darjeeling and her ashes were sent to England and her brother Richmond Noble received it. In the family cemetery, Sister's father, brother and her ashes have been buried. The pedestal of the statue has a poem "Benediction" written by Swamiji, inscribed on it with a biographical sketch of Sister Nivedita on one side. Sarada Sarkar, a school teacher settled in the UK, got in touch with the descendants of Sister Nivedita. Selendra Margot Giardin, great-granddaughter of Richmond Noble, came to Kolkata in 2017. Sarkar, along with a few Indians, set up the Sister Nivedita Celebrations Committee in the UK and started raising funds for the statue. Swami Suviranandaji took it up with Banerjee and that's how Sister's first statue at a public place was installed.