Indians mark Diwali by lighting a record number of earthen lamps

Associated Press

LUCKNOW, India (AP) — Millions of Indians are celebrating the annual Hindu festival of lights, Diwali, by symbolically lighting a record 2.51 million earthen oil lamps at dusk on Wednesday on the banks of the river Saryu in a northern Indian city they believe to be the birthplace of the deity, Lord Ram. A Guinness World Records team presented a certificate to Uttar Pradesh state Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath, acknowledging the unprecedented number of oil lamps, exceeding last year’s 2.2 million. The celebrations took place within the northern city of Ayodhya where Prime Minister Narendra Modi nine months ago opened a controversial Hindu temple built on the ruins of a historic mosque.