Sai Baba in the media

Words of Bhagavan Sri Sathya Sai Baba from his Biography: "My Mission is to grant you Courage and Joy, to drive away Weakness and Fear. Do not condemn yourselves as sinners; sin is a misnomer for what are really errors, provided you repent sincerely and resolve not to follow Evil again. Pray to the Lord to give you the strength to overcome the habits which had enticed you when you were ignorant."

"I have come to light the lamp of Love in your hearts, to see that it shines day by day with added luster. I have not come on any mission or publicity for any sect or creed or cause nor have I come to collect followers for any doctrine. I have no plans to attract disciples or devotees into my fold or any fold. I have come to tell you of the Universal, Unitary Faith, this Path of Love, this Duty of Love, this Obligation to Love." (Sri Sathya Sai Baba, 4 July 1968)

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Source: http://www.hinduonnet.com/thehindu/2002/07/16/stories/2002071608330300.htm

Online edition of India's National Newspaper
Tuesday, Jul 16, 2002

SriLankan Airlines begins flights to City

By Our Staff Reporter

BANGALORE July 15. Bangalore is connected to one more international destination: Colombo. SriLankan Airlines, Sri Lanka's international carrier, touched down at the Bangalore airport on Monday morning. It was the maiden flight of the airlines' direct thrice-a-week schedule between the City and Colombo.

Bangalore is the sixth Indian destination connected by the airlines. On its agenda are two more direct flights, to Bodhgaya and Kochi, which are likely to commence in November this year. A flight to Hyderabad is on the cards next year. The airlines operates 30 flights to India, including 12 a week to Chennai, three to New Delhi and Mumbai, five to Trichy, and one to Thiruvananthapuram.

Later, addressing presspersons, the Sri Lankan Tourism Minister, Gamini Lokuge, said the airlines was mainly targeting leisure travellers and "IT traffic" from Bangalore to Colombo. "From Colombo, we are hoping to attract approximately 100 passengers a week to Bangalore on SriLankan Airlines flights every Monday, Thursday, and Saturday,'' he explained.

Sri Lankan passengers, he said, were mainly leisure travellers, pilgrims, and students. "Thrice-weekly direct flights to Bangalore is expected to significantly enhance traffic between the two nations,'' he added.

He said that last year, there were 34,000 arrivals from India. This year, till June, the number had touched 37,000. It was expected to double by the year-end. The increase, he explained, was mainly because of the special offers and Indian tourists looking for alternative destinations other than the West. The target was way below the high of 90,000 arrivals in 1982.

The Chairman of SriLankan Airlines, Daya Pelpola, said Bangalore was an important destination, as many Lankans used the route to travel to Puttaparthi and Udupi.

The airlines reckons that more than 1,000 devotees of Sri Sathya Sai Baba come to Bangalore every month to visit Whitefield on the outskirts of the City. Besides, about 500 Sri Lankan students are studying in colleges here.

The Sri Lanka Tourism Board Chairman, Paddy Withana, said that with the commencement of the direct flight, Colombo would be only 90 minutes from Bangalore. "The outbound travel in Sri Lanka is more than the inbound travel to the country. India could exploit this,'' he felt.