Rain shadow on religious tourism

SAPTASHRUNGI/NASHIK: The last three days' downpour has caused major damage to roads leading to various temples and shrines, much to the disappointment of thousands who visit these places of worship during this time of the year.
The public works department (PWD) prohibited movement of heavy vehicles towards Saptashrungi Gad from Wednesday itself, the roads leading to Trimbakeshwar and Mangi Tungi peaks are also in a bad shape because of the rain.
"The PWD has banned movement of heavy vehicles towards Saptashrungi Gadh after noticing a major breach on a strategic turn along the hilly route towards the temple. Now, only light vehicles are permitted to go up to the foothills of the temple," PWD deputy engineer K R Kedar said.
The administration has taken the decision to avert any accident because of the poor condition of the road. MSRTC buses are also banned to move around the temple foothills, as a result many devotees are facing major inconvenience in reaching the shrine.
The month of Shravan has already started and the number of visitors is expected to increase every passing day. At present, the buses are dropping the commuters up to Nanduri, from where they have to move ahead either by private vehicles or foot.
"On Thursday, senior PWD officials inspected the conditions of the roads and bridges on Saptashrungi Gadh. The conditions in no way favour opening the roads in immediate future. Major repair work has to be done before allowing heavy vehicles up to the foothills," Kedar said.
The heavy rain also made it difficult to climb the Mangi Tungi hills for the Jain devotees, who kept visiting the spot to offer prayers at the 108-ft statue of Lord Rishabhdeva. While the road up to the foothills of Mangi Tungi is intact, the temporary route constructed to reach at the idol, situated at 2500-ft high from sea level, has suffered damage.
"From August 3, Mangi Tungi is hosting the 16-day Shanti Vidhan ritual - one of the important religious events for the Jains. Hundreds of devotees are reaching here to be a part of this ritual. If the rain continues, it would have been very difficult for them to reach the hilltop," said Ravindrakirti Swami, president of the Mangi Tungi peeth.
At present, fourt-wheelers with special gear-box are allowed on the route heading towards hills. Another Jain pilgrimage centre, Anjaneri Hills, has also become difficult to reach after the footsteps got damaged by the heavy rain.
Trimbakeshwar, one of the 12 Jyotirlingas of Lord Shiva in the country, comes in the catchment of the Godavari. Till date, it has received more than 1,300mm of rain. This has made the road condition extremely risky for commute. "Though the road up to Trimabkeshwar is in better condition, the internal roads in the hilly areas have suffered major damage," said Lalita Shinde, a trustee of the Trimbakeshwar temple.
People visiting Trimbakeshwar are being asked to drop their plans to climb the Brahmagiri hills for security reasons.