Omkareshwar halts free protocol darshan visits:Trustee alleges Deputy Collector is helping hotel owners give VIP access; now darshan costs 300 rupees

A large number of devotees have gathered in Omkareshwar due to Christmas and New Year holidays. Long queues have formed for Jyotirlinga darshan, and traffic jams are reported as vehicle lines reach up to Mortakka bridge on the Indore route. To manage the heavy rush, Khandwa Collector Rishav Gupta has announced that the protocol darshan system will remain closed for one week. Now, even devotees with protocol will have to pay 300 rupees each to get VIP darshan. The protocol system will be reviewed and may reopen after January 5, depending on the crowd. Trustee removed negligent employees Meanwhile, Rao Pushpendra Singh, the new managing trustee of Omkareshwar Jyotirlinga Temple, has started making changes to the arrangements. He has removed several employees who were negligent in their work. With the increase in crowd, fraudsters operating under the guise of VIP darshan have become active, whom the trustee himself is catching. Slip found in the name of deputy collector Meanwhile, the trustee found a slip with an outside devotee, on which the name of Deputy Collector Mukesh Kashiv was written. When Rao Pushpendra Singh inquired, the devotee said that he was staying at the Grand Omkara Hotel. The hotel owner himself had given him this slip and said that darshan would be possible under protocol at the temple. Also, a policeman from the hotel would accompany them to the temple. Hearing this, Rao Pushpendra Singh was surprised. Allegation of collusion with hotel owners In a conversation with Bhaskar, Rao Pushpendra Singh said, “The Deputy Collector whom the district administration has appointed as in-charge for the darshan system in the temple is colluding with hotel owners. When I investigated, I found that hotel owners charge a hefty amount from their customers in the name of protocol. They make a slip from there and send them to the temple with a policeman. The slip has ‘Mukesh Kashiv Deputy Collector’ written on it, due to which no temple staff can stop those devotees.” See 2 pictures Ticket booking on the temple’s website If a devotee wants quick darshan these days, they can avail the facility by purchasing a 300 rupee ticket from the temple’s website. After January 5, the protocol facility will be implemented as usual. This is because the quick darshan ticket system in the temple has seen bookings for four thousand devotees daily across 4 slots. Whereas currently, 700 to 800 devotees are coming daily under the protocol. Queue at railway counter to go to Omkareshwar There was a crowd of pilgrims at the railway counter at Khandwa Railway Station to go to Omkareshwar. Due to this, all coaches of the MEMU train that departed from Khandwa to Sanawad in the morning were full of passengers. The MEMU train makes two trips daily between Khandwa-Sanawad from Friday to Tuesday. Before the New Year, more devotees are going to Omkareshwar Jyotirlinga darshan by train via Sanawad than by bus. Vehicles parked amidst stones and potholes
40 personnel have been deployed in Omkareshwar to manage security and traffic. The constables managing the arrangements stated that the parking lots at Prasadalaya, Kuber Bhandari, P-One, and the Trenching Ground get full before noon. The parking at the Trenching Ground is also uneven. Additionally, temporary parking was created in fields and other locations, which have large stones and potholes. Two and a half lakh devotees visited in four days
The crowd of devotees in the pilgrimage town of Omkareshwar has been increasing since last week. Within just four days, more than two and a half lakh devotees have visited Lord Omkar. This included 1 lakh devotees on December 26 and over 1.25 lakh devotees on Saturday, December 27. During this period, the temple trust earned 12 lakh rupees from VIP darshan.