Hassan
The nine-day Hasanamba festival came to an end on Friday as the doors of the historic Hasanamba temple were closed in the presence of senior officers of the district administration. The temple is opened only for a few days in a year. Nearly three lakh people, including many from distant places, visited the temple this time.
Deputy Commissioner Rohini Sindhuri, Superintendent of Police Prakash Gowda, and Assistant Commissioner H.L. Nagaraj, who is also administrator of the temple, were present when the doors were closed. Next year, the temple will be opened from October 17 to 29.
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Ms. Sindhuri told reporters that considering the number of devotees visiting the temple during the festival, the district administration had sent a proposal to the State government on keeping the temple open for one to three months. “As of now, the temple is opened only for a few days. Thousands of devotees throng the temple in a day. We have sent a proposal to extend the duration so that many people can come without any difficulty,” she said.
Mr. Gowda said more than three lakh people visited the temple in the last nine days. He thanked the public and officers for cooperating with the district administration to conduct the event.
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Letter in ‘hundi’
When the hundi was opened for counting the collection, the government staff and volunteers roped in for the task were surprised to see many letters with specific requests addressed to the deity. While a man has sought the deity to bless his family members and cattle with good health, a resident from Bengaluru has appealed for help in finding a bridegroom for his daughter. Another devotee, based in Italy, had sent a letter through one of his relatives stating that he would visit the temple with his son next year and also appealed to the deity to improve his son’s health. A student has requested for strength to clear exams successfully.
The volunteers also found a couple of counterfeit currency notes and scrapped notes of ₹500 and ₹1,000 denomination.