Not just ’water’ even ’holy water’ is scarce DK

Not just ’water’ even ’holy water’ is scarce DK

Mangalore Today News Network

Subrahmanya, April 23, 2016: The new custom is that even rituals must follow the changes in nature. The well known Kukke Subrahmanya temple, in Dakshina Kannada district, is facing water shortage, with the water-level at the ‘tirtha’ Baavi (well) inside the temple having dropped drastically,  the administration has been forced to temporarily suspend supply and sale of ‘tirtha’ (holy water) bottles to devotees.

On an average, 2,000 ‘tirtha’ bottles of 200 ml are sold every day at Rs. 6 a bottle, and the numbers go up to 3,000 on occasions.

C.U. Poovappa, executive officer of the temple, said only a small amount of water is available in the well, enough to perform the daily rituals. Though water rises in the mornings, using it to fill ‘tirtha’ bottles is not right.

The Kumaradhara river is the water source for Kukke Subrahmanya and surrounding regions. The temple utilises the water for mass cooking, cleaning, and in guesthouses. The temple witnesses around 10,000 footfalls every day, which goes up to 15,000 on special days. Almost all the devotees have ‘anna prasada’ at the temple, with the kitchen producing nearly 12 quintals of rice every day. The temple is the richest among Muzrai temples in Karnataka, with annual earnings of Rs. 88.84 crore in 2015-16. Of this, Rs. 19 crore comes from hundi offerings alone.