NEW BRUNSWICK, N.J. ÷ Honoring the life and works of Mahatma Gandhi, the Association of Indians at Rutgers University brought together 100 students to do community service and listen to various speakers for the National Gandhi Day of Service on Saturday.

The program started at 11:30 a.m., at the Busch Campus Center. After speakers made presentations, participants spent three hours working on community service projects such as helping out at the North Brunswick Senior Citizen Center, planting and harvesting at the University Agricultural Organic Farm and helping with Edison voter registration.

This is the program's second year at Rutgers since School of Engineering fourth-year student Naresh Tanna founded it.

The First National Gandhi Day of Service was held Oct. 2, 1998, at the University of Michigan and organized by its Indian American Student Association, according to the National Gandhi Day of Service Web site. "Their vision was to unify people through the common goal of serving communities in need."

The event takes place every year on the Saturday after Oct. 2 ÷ Gandhi's birthday.

"I think this is a day measured not by numbers of participants, but rather by getting participants involved in community service," Tanna said.

More than 200 groups participated in the event across the country. Seton Hall and Stevens Institute of Technology were invited to participate in the event at Rutgers.

Rutgers College senior and event co-founder Gaurav Dave said, "I think the Indian and Asian community, which was rather fickle in the past, is going to unite and create an impact on our society."