RSS chief Mohan Bhagwat on Saturday credited Prime Minister Narendra Modi's "Swachh Bharat Abhiyan" for having a profound impact on temples and their cleanliness quotient.
Speaking at the inauguration of the three-day International Temples Convention and Expo (ITCX) 2023 here, he asserted that cleanliness is an extremely critical aspect of temple management as places of worship are also a "symbol of purity".
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“A huge and extremely critical aspect of temple management is cleanliness because temples are a symbol of purity. Definitely, with the prime minister's Swachh Bharat Abhiyan (Clean India), there has been a great effect on temples as well. However, with the International Temple Convention, we seek to achieve this on a deeper level in every temple in the world -- small or big," Bhagwat said.
"We need to pass on the legacy of temple service to the next generation for which education and awareness on temple ecosystems is important. In view of the same, we need to solidify every aspect of temple management, whether it is hygiene, service or infrastructure," he said.
Girish Kulkarni, founder, International Temples Convention & Expo 2023, said CEOs and management heads of 32 countries and 350 temples in India will participate in the event in which a total of 16 sessions will take place. Talks on topics ranging from safety, disaster management, security, fund management, surveillance, medical initiative and 'langar' (community kitchen) will be taken up in the convention, he said.
Union Minister of State for Consumer Affairs, Food and Public Distribution, Ashwini Kumar Choubey hailed the organisers for holding the event in Kashi, "given its importance and its place at the core of Indian spirituality and culture".
"Our Indian culture is one of the oldest, and our temples are not limited to being places of worship - they work for educational, medicinal and health, as well as many other humanitarian causes. Furthermore, pilgrims and temple tourism play an important role in overall tourism and contribute significantly to the Indian economy," he noted.
ITCX chairman and member of Maharashtra Legislative Council Prasad Lad said the history of temples in India is more than 5,000-years-old, and "our dharma has held strong through these years without dying".
"Through ITCX, the world's biggest and first-ever event on temple management, we intend to help temples and temple culture across the country develop and reach greater heights by conducting seminars across avenues of education, food donations/prasad, langar management, security, fund management, and even hygiene and cleanliness," he said.