Earning of Mahavir Mandir goes up to Rs 1 lakh per day

PATNA: The earning of the famous Mahavir Mandir has gone now up to an average of Rs 1 lakh per day. The temple trust of the Mandir has passed a
budget of Rs 3.65 crore for the financial year 2009-10.

Mahavir Mandir Trust secretary Kishore Kunal said that the major source of income of the Mandir are offerings amounting to Rs 1 crore, Rs 80 lakh from rituals, Rs 1.70 crore from sale of Naivedyam, Rs 11 lakh from donations and Rs 4 lakh from miscellaneous sources, per annum. This income does not include special donations given to Mahavir Mandir for Mahavir Cancer Sansthan and other hospitals nor does it include the revenues of the four hospitals established by it, Kunal added.

He further said that it is the highest declared income of any temple in north India after Vaishno Devi Temple Trust. Of the income of Rs 3.65 crore, Kunal said that the temple trust would give a grant of Rs 1.50 crore to Mahavir Vaatsalya Hospital, Rs 20 lakh to Sansthan and Rs 10 lakh to Mahavir Arogya Hospital. The trust will spend Rs 20 lakh on the treatment of the children afflicted with cancer.

This apart the trust has decided to spend Rs 7.50 lakh on philanthropic activities like cremation of unclaimed bodies, financial assistance to Dalits and awards like Shrawan Kumar Award for selfless service to the parents. An amount of Rs 14.75 lakh will be spent on fees given to the Religious Trust Board and Chartered Accountants. Again, Rs 4.75 lakh will be spent on maintenance of two temples -- Vishalnath Mahadev temple in Haijpur and Shaupokhar temple in Muzaffarpur, Kunal said and added that the recurring expenditure of the trust will be to the tune of Rs 73.20 lakh which included publication of books, provision of materials for all rituals and Dakshina to priests.

Still there will be surplus of Rs 64.80 lakh which will be utilised on the establishment of paediatric hospital at Sitamarhi and two projects -- Jiwan Jyoti Kendra and Achyut Dham (orphanage) at Hajipur. When the present trust took over the temple in November 1987 the annual income was a meagre Rs 11,000 per annum, Kunal said.

Source : Times of India