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posted by: Sanstuti Nath
Last updated: June 24, 2023, at 10:25 am IST
Earlier, the Badrinath Kedarnath Temple Committee said in a statement that 23,777,800 grams of gold was used in the precincts of the temple (File Image/Shutterstock)
The minister explained that the gold plating was done under the supervision of experts of the Archaeological Survey of India, adding that one of the donors had bought the gold and inlaid it on the walls of the holy sanctuary, and the temple committee had no direct role in it.
The Uttarakhand government has decided to form a high-level committee to investigate allegations of fraud worth 1.25 billion rupees in gold plating in the precincts of Kedarnath Temple. State Minister for Tourism, Religion and Culture Satpal Maharaj on Friday said he had instructed Minister for Culture and Religious Affairs Harichandra Simwal to set up a high-level commission of inquiry headed by Commissioner Garhwal to get to the bottom of the matter.
Semwal has been asked to include technical experts and goldsmiths on the investigation committee. Maharaj said the state government was “very sensitive” on the matter, and action would be taken against those found guilty.
He explained that as per the provisions of the Shri Badrinath-Kedarnath Temple Commission Act 1939, the donation was accepted and permission was taken from the state government for the gold plate in the precincts of the Kedarnath Temple. The minister explained that the gold plating was done under the supervision of experts of the Archaeological Survey of India, adding that one of the donors had bought the gold and inlaid it on the walls of the holy sanctuary, and the temple committee had no direct role in it. .
Maharaj said that after completing the work, the donor submitted the bill and other papers to the temple committee. He accused the opposition parties of trying to disturb the peace of the Gardham Yatra by giving “unnecessary” weight to the issue.
Earlier, the Badrinath Kedarnath Temple Committee said in a statement that 23,777,800 grams of gold were used in the precincts of the temple. Its current value was about Rs 14.38 crores, while the total weight of copper sheets used for gilt work was 1,001,300 kg with a total value of Rs 29,000. Recently, Teerth Purohit of Kedarnath Temple and Vice President of Chardham Mahapanchayat Santosh Trivedi released a video on social media claiming that instead of gold painting on the walls of the sanctum sanctorum, copper was used and the scam was around 1.25 billion rupees.
(This story was not edited by the News18 staff and was published from a syndicated news agency feed – PTI)
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