Baba's aarti became expensive in Kashi Vishwanath: From March 1, devotees will have to pay 500 rupees for Mangala Aarti; Told the crowd of devotees the reason

Baba's aarti has become expensive in Kashi Vishwanath temple in Varanasi. Devotees will have to pay Rs 150 more for Mangala Aarti. That is, now instead of 350, you will have to pay 500 rupees. At the same time, the tickets for Sapta Rishi Aarti, Shringar Bhog Aarti, and Midday Bhog Aarti have been increased by Rs 120. Instead of 180, 300 rupees will have to be paid for these aarti. The new rate will be applicable from March 1.

This decision was taken in the 104th board meeting of Srikashi Vishwanath Temple Trust on Wednesday. Earlier in 2018 i.e. 5 years ago, the ticket for Mangala Aarti was increased by Rs.100. Then the ticket was 250 rupees. The Trust Board said that because of the increasing number of devotees in the temple, ticket prices are being increased.

CEO Sunil Kumar Verma told that only the rate of Aarti has been increased. Apart from this, there is no increase in Rudrabhishek and Prasad. Significantly, after the construction of the temple corridor, the number of devotees has increased almost 8 times to 80 million. At the same time, the annual offering of 8 to 10 crores to the temple has now increased 10 times to 105 crores.

250 seats for Mangala Aarti, booking 15-20 days in advance

People associated with the temple management told that Mangala Aarti has 250 seats. They have online booking. These seats were getting filled 15-20 days in advance. Many people did not come. An increase in prices will reduce bookings. It is expected that devotees will get Mangala Aarti tickets 5-7 days in advance.

105 crores received in charity this year, 40 crores will be spent

CEO Sunil Kumar Verma told that Vishwanath temple has received a donation of Rs 105 crore this year i.e. 2022-23. At the same time, this year the expenditure budget has been kept at 40 crores. The facilities for the devotees are continuously being increased in the temple. In the board meeting, the President of Temple Trust Professor Nagendra Pandey, Divisional Commissioner Kaushal Raj Sharma, and DM S. Rajalingam has been present.

There will be a dress code for Archakas and priests

Seeing the increasing crowd in the temple, the Archak and the priest looked different. They look alike, so their dress code is set. 2 sets of the dress will be given to them by the trust. A calendar will be prepared by the Board for organizing religious and cultural events for the whole year at Srikashi Vishwanath Temple. By forming an internal committee, preparations are being made to publish the diary of the trust in March.

E-rickshaws will run to Madagin and Godaulia temple

In the trust meeting, the members decided to ply e-rickshaws from Madagin and Godaulia. Vehicular traffic is restricted here due to congestion. Because of this, the visitors face difficulty in reaching the temple. It was decided in the board meeting that after checking its feasibility, the municipal corporation or the traffic police would help in getting this work done.

No increase in the rate of Rudrabhishek, Prasad

According to the temple management, there has been no change in the tickets for Rudrabhishek. Its ticket price ranges from Rs 450 to Rs 2600 and above. This difference varies depending on the number of Shastri. Malsan, Rudrabhishek with a Shastri will cost Rs 450. At the same time, 5500 rupees will be taken in Rudrabhishek with 11 Shastri as before.

Devotees increased 8 times after the corridor was built

The Vishwanath corridor was inaugurated on 13 December 2021. Data was released by the temple administration on 25 November 2022. According to this, about 8 crore devotees visited the temple. At the same time, the temple administration told that before the corridor about one crore devotees used to reach the temple in a year. That is, after the construction of the corridor, the number of devotees has increased by 8 times.

According to the temple administration, before the corridor, the temple used to get an offering of 10 to 12 crores annually. After the construction of the corridor, this offering has reached Rs 105 crore. The online donation, gold-silver, donation-vessel, and property donation are all in this.

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