Kukke temple retains top position in income

Kukke Subrahmanya Temple in Dakshina Kannada has retained the top position in earning income during 2019-20. The temple has earned an annual income of Rs 98.92 crore for 2019-20 (April 2019 to March 2020).

A big chunk of the temple’s revenue comes from various ‘sevas’. With Rs 42.5 crore, earnings were from sevas including ‘sarpasamskara’ and ‘sarpadosha’ and others.

Other sources of income are Rs 22,38,03,033 as interest earned from banks and Rs 18.2 crore as hundi (donation box) collection, Rs 1.60 crore from contracts, Rs 9.33 lakh from crops cultivated in the garden of the temple, Rs 60.13 lakh from rents, Rs 3.45 cr from kanike, Rs 82.48 lakh as interest on SB and other accounts, Rs 4.69 crore from mass feeding contributions and Rs 4.8 crore as rent from complexes halls
and others.

Dakshina Kannada district has 36 ‘A’ category temples, 44 ‘B’ category temples, and 416 ‘C’ category temples. A large number of devotees visit these temples from March to May owing to the holidays for schools and colleges. However, this year, owing to lockdown restrictions and ban on opening of the temples, the earnings of the temples have been hit hard during the period.

Further, priests and others employed in the temples are also jobless following the lockdown. They are unable to carry out priesthood work outside the temples
as well.

Facebook live

Several temples in the district are offering Facebook live of the daily puja rituals to the devotees. The Facebook page of Mangaladevi Temple goes live during the afternoon puja, for the devotees.