A foundation stone laying ceremony for a Hindu temple was also the scene for a successful record attempt in India for the most people shaking hands simultaneously earlier this year.
Organised by the Shree Khodhaldham Trust, the event in Village Kagvad, Rajkot in January was witnessed by an enormous crowd of over 2 million devotees from the Leuva Patel community.
Following the worship of Hindu deity Khodayal Maa, 24,435 couples proceeded to shake hands for the expertly organised attempt.
A roar of applause greeted the announcement by Guinness World Records adjudicators Lucia Sinigaglieisi and Nikhil Shukla confirming that a new benchmark had been set, with a figure that beat the previous record of 2,634 couples set in Puducherry, India in 2010 by some distance.
