Muzrai temples under scanner after staff get away with fraud

Mysuru: Muzrai temples here have been in the news recently for all the wrong reasons.
Lack of transparency in temple affairs has caused a loss to the exchequer, claim devotees who make offerings through various sevas and hundis. Authorities are trying to rectify it but keeping a round-the-clock vigil on all temples is challenging.
The authorities of Sri Chamundeshwari Temple atop Chamundi Hills suspended three employees for manipulating software at the special entry counter and swindled over Rs 7 lakh. They entered the date as 2008 instead of 2018 while issuing a few special entry tickets priced at Rs 100 and Rs 30 and pocketed the money. The temple gets over 4,000 devotees on normal days and the number goes up ten-folds on special occasions. The crime came to light only after new software was installed. It’s still not known how much money was swindled and it’s suspected to have been going on for the past eight years.
Three employees of Srikanteshwara Temple in Nanjangud were booked for depositing less money than was collected from devotees performing thulabara and others sevas.
These are the two major muzrai temples among five in Mysuru district. They earn high revenue through offering and other special sevas. These two temples get over Rs 1 crore each once every 45 days from the offerings alone. Money through other sevas is collected separately. There are 18 offering boxes in the Chamundi temple.
BN Nagendra, a 50-year-old devotee, said the root cause for misappropriation is because the employees aren’t transferred. Once appointed, they serve for many years and this enables them find loopholes and siphon off money. “At least now the authorities must make transfers compulsory for all temple employees,” he said.
Mysuru assistant commissioner NC Venkataraju said prima facie Srikanteshwara Temple money received in the form of offerings by devotees was misused. There’s a record for misappropriation of over Rs 17 lakh and those involved have been transferred, said the official conducting a departmental inquiry.
Every temple is managed by an executive officer and directly accountable to the muzrai department. Mysuru muzrai tahsildar Yathiraju told TOI that after misappropriation of money came to light at Sri Chamundeshwari Temple, more CCTV cameras were installed, records checked and all activities monitored.