T.N. temples receive ₹600 crore in donations for civil work since July 2022

The donation dashboard at the Hindu Religious and Charitable Endowments (HR&CE) Department keeps changing constantly. It logs in details of the amounts given as donations for civil work, called Thiruppani, for temples in Tamil Nadu.

So far this fasli year (July 2022 to June 2023), donations for work including construction of gopurams, sannidhis, maha mandapams, halls for tonsure and ear piercing, madapalli, annadhana koodams and new vahanams or repairs to existing infrastructure at various temples stand at around ₹600 crore.

Work costing less than ₹15 lakh needs the sanction of the joint commissioner, while work costing over ₹15 lakh and below ₹10 crore needs the sanction of the commissioner, and if there is any work that costs over ₹10 crore, the estimate and letter of acceptance will be sent to the government for its approval.

“Donors usually prefer to execute the work on their own but under the guidance of the department. Hence, if someone, for instance, wants to construct a gopuram, they have to approach the respective executive officer of the temple, who will get an estimate from the engineer and then send the proposal for sanction according to the amount donated. Once permission is granted, the donor will be permitted to start the work,” explained Officer on Special Duty, J. Kumaragurubaran, who has installed the dashboard to keep track of the money being donated to temples.

Though the department’s website has a facility whereby donors can donate for specific work for temples, around 98% of donors prefer executing the work by themselves, he said. Even for donation of silver/gold kavachams or large pieces of jewellery, whose value is high, prior sanction is required. Small pieces of jewellery or silver pieces can be presented to the temple directly after due presentation of receipts and entry into the respective registers.

“A large number of people are coming forward to donate for temple work. When there is important work and a donor gives a large amount, we ensure that the clearance is accorded as soon as possible after following due process. We also keep tab of the work and see to it that it is completed in a time-bound manner,” Mr. Kumaragurubaran said.