Encroachment on temple land

Tribune News Service

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Dehradun, December 22

The Shri Ganga Uddhar Sewa Samiti that manages the Chandrabani Temple in Dehradun has expressed concern over the large-scale encroachments on the temple premises in the recent years.

Samiti president Mahant Hemraj Maharaj stated this while addressing mediapersons here yesterday.

He said the land mafia was resorting to large-scale encroachments and despite repeated appeals to the administration, no action had been taken in this regard. Chief Minister Harish Rawat had visited the temple on April 13, 2015, and had promised fencing of the entire Chandrabani Temple campus but the promise was still to be fulfilled. Even Forest Minister Dinesh Agarwal had been apprised of the rampant encroachments taking place on the campus but to no avail, Mahant Hemraj said.

The Mahant said Chandrabani Temple was linked to sage Gautam and held immense religious importance. The Baisakhi fair takes place at the temple every year which attracts a large number of pilgrims.

“Similarly, the temple crematorium is used by people of around 40 villages but there are little infrastructure facilities at the temple and its surroundings,” he said.

There has been a long-standing demand for construction of various approach roads to the temple, such as Wildlife Institute-Chandrabani chowk road and Kailashpur-Chandrabani road.

Shri Ganga Uddhar Sewa Samiti secretary Shyamlal Chowdhary was also present.