Prime Minister Narendra Modi will be visiting Pune and Mumbai on June 14, where he will be inaugurating a temple dedicated to the 17th century Bhakti poet-saint Tukaram at the latter’s birthplace in Dehu.
In his second visit to Pune in three months, the Prime Minister will inaugurate the ‘Jagatguru Shri Sant Tukaram Shila (rock) Mandir’ on Tuesday. A shila temple was built after the death of Tukaram, who was famous for devotional poetry known as abhangas and community-oriented worship through spiritual songs known as kirtans.
While the rock structure was not formally structured as a temple, the mandir has been rebuilt in stone masonry with 36 peaks, with an idol of Sant Tukaram in it. The site for centuries has been the starting point of the Wari — the annual pilgrimage to the shrine of Lord Vithoba in Pandharpur made by devotees (warkaris) carrying palanquins bearing the footprints of the Bhakti saints Dnyaneshwar (from Alandi) and Tukaram (from Dehu).
Mr. Modi will be presented with a special memento on the occasion in the form of a ‘designer’ Tukaram pagadi (headgear) and uparne (shawl).
The white-coloured Tukaram pagadi, made of silk cloth, has all the trappings of Warkari heritage and has been created by Pune’s renowned Murudkar Zendewale and Phetewale, known for making traditional turbans and flags. The headgear will also have a couplet of Tukaram’s abhang inscribed on it.
Security has been heightened ahead of the Prime Minister’s visit with a robust security shield to be in place on Tuesday.
The entry of devotees into the Sant Tukaram temple has been allowed in a restricted manner on Sunday and Monday while it will be prohibited on Tuesday, said the temple trustees.
Mr. Modi had earlier visited Pune city on March 6 this year to inaugurate the Pune Metro rail project and a slew of other projects.
Jal Bhushan Building
Following his function in Dehu, the Prime Minister is to inaugurate the Jal Bhushan Building (the official residence of the Maharashtra Governor since 1885) and the ‘Gallery of Revolutionaries’ at the Raj Bhavan in Mumbai.
The gallery has been developed in the bunker (that was discovered on the Raj Bhavan premises in 2016) as a one-of-a-kind museum to commemorate the contributions of the State’s freedom fighters and revolutionaries like Vasudev Balwant Phadke, the Chaphekar brothers, Savarkar brothers and Madam Bhikaji Cama among others.
He will also be participating in the bicentennial function of the Mumbai Samachar newspaper at Mumbai’s Bandra Kurla Complex later in the evening.
