17 hours ago
Priests conducting tarpana puja in S'patna to get ID cards
Mandya: The priests at the four ghats in Srirangapatna town, which are renowned for immersing the ashes of deceased persons and conducting post-funeral rituals, will soon be issued ID cards.
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A rate chart will be prepared to protect the interests of the devotees.
Meanwhile, the Srirangapatna Town Municipal Council earned Rs 95 lakh from auctioning the cleanliness works on these ghats.
The four ghats of Srirangapatna, i.e., Paschima Vahini, Dodda Gosai Ghat, Sangama, and Srirangaswamy Temple, have been identified for the rituals where Rs 100 will be collected as cleanliness charges. Thousands of devotees from across South India visit these ghats to immerse the ashes of deceased persons and perform various rituals.
"This amount is not new. Earlier, too, we were collecting (money). But we incurred around Rs 7 lakh loss as the collection amount was less than the expenses. Now, in the auction, we got a good response," explained municipal council in-charge president L Dinesh to TOI.
Meanwhile, the council decided to issue ID cards for the priests to perform the rituals, besides publishing a rate chart. "The priests who perform the rituals are directed to enrol with the council, and ID cards will be issued to them.
This will help the devotees," said municipal council in-charge chief officer Rajanna M.
According to authorities, based on the directions of the Karnataka high court following the filing of Public Interest Litigation, the district administration and the council have taken up initiatives to save the Cauvery River water from pollution in these four ghats, which are known for ash immersion and post-death rituals.
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"Two companies came forward to prepare a detailed project report (DPR) on proposals to keep the River Cauvery clean in these ghats," explained officials.
Meanwhile, the priests welcomed the council's decision. Priest Bhanu Prakash Sharma said the council's decision to issue ID cards for the priests will protect the devotees from all kinds of cheating. "Many times, I receive complaints that in the name of rituals, devotees are cheated.
If the ID cards are made mandatory, it is possible to streamline the entire system," he said.
He also welcomed the rate chart, saying many times devotees are asked to pay Rs 10,000 to Rs 15,000 for the rituals, which can be performed for just Rs 3,000 to Rs 4,000.
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"Two companies came forward to prepare a detailed project report (DPR) on proposals to keep the River Cauvery clean in these ghats," explained officials.
