INSUBCONTINENT EXCLUSIVE:
BENGALURU: Pomp and gaiety marked Ganesh Chaturthi celebrations across the city on Monday and Tuesday
However, the showstopper this time has been the Sri Sathya Ganapathy Temple in JP Nagar, Bengaluru which decked up its Ganesha idol and
mantapa with currency notes and coins worth over Rs 2.5 crore.Known for decking up its idol in a unique way on every festival, the temple
stuck to its trend of surprising and delighting devotees for the 11th year in a row
On previous occasions, It had used sugarcane, vegetables, fruits, coconuts, dry fruits, corn, cotton and leaves (patri), among other things
Devotees were seen merrily clicking away pictures of the decor
The unique look incorporated currency notes of 10 to Rs 500 denomination
Also, 1.5 lakh Rs 5, Rs 10, and Rs 20 coins were used to embellish the idol and the mantapa
The display involved a month-long work by 150 individuals with CCTV surveillance providing security.Artistic representationsCoins have been
used to create artistic representations of Lord Ganesha, Jai Karnataka, Nation First, Vikram Lander, Chandrayaan, and Jai Jawaan Jai Kisan
The temple committee collected money from more than 150 devotees over the past three months to decorate the mantapa and the idol with
The highest donation came in the form of Rs 35 lakh in coins from a member of the temple committee.Ram Mohan Raja, founder-member of Sri
Sathya Ganapathy Temple, told TOI: "We are into uniqueness
That's the reason we try to do something different that stands out
The idea of decorating Lord Ganesha with currency notes popped up at a meeting three months ago
Then on, we started to spread the word among devotees to donate money
Every year, the footfall at the temple keeps going up and this year more than 1 lakh people have visited in the two days."The notes have
been wrapped in plastic for protection and also so that they could be stitched together
Once the decoration is removed, the money will be given back to the donor devotees
"Previously, we used to donate all the material to the poor and offer it to devotees depending on the situation
Since it's money this time we will be returning the same to the devotees," said Raja.The unique decoration display is open to the public
until Thursday evening, with the possibility of an extension based on demand and footfall.
