With successive holidays approaching in Kerala, Guruvayur temple is crowded. The record number of devotees has also increased temple revenue. Meanwhile, stale meat was seized from an Arabic hotel called Taste Palace, which also serves beef in the temple town.

On Thursday, 27 March, the Guruvayur Temple’s single-day Hundi collection was Rs 64.59 lakh. Forty-two marriages and 456 Choroonus were held. 15.63 lakh rupees were received from the ghee lamp offering alone, 17.43 lakhs through Thulabharam, and 6.57 lakhs through the Palpayasam offering.

Hindus observe Choroonu, which marks the baby’s transition from liquid to solid food consumption. Per Malayali tradition, the infant sits on the father’s or uncle’s knee while wearing a “Kasavu mundu,” a sandal-colored garment with golden zari borders. The Pujari then blesses the baby with sandal paste, tulsi leaves, and flowers and usually feeds it rice, dal, and bananas.

Tulabharam is an ancient Hindu practice in which a person is weighed against a commodity, and the equivalent weight of that commodity is offered as a donation to the temple where it is performed. Offering one’s weight in tender coconuts, butter, sugar, fruits, copper, silver, gold, or any other material is a famous vow taken by devotees.

The communist-managed Devaswom supplies most of these materials in Guruvayur. Rates vary from Rs 10 per kilo for coconut shells to Rs 45,000 for silver and Rs 2,15,000 for Mysore Sandal. For non-Hindus, the Thulabharam facility is available near the Kalyana Mandapam.

VIP darshan was not allowed on Friday, Saturday, and Sunday from 6 a.m. to 2 p.m. According to the temple website, only ‘qualified people’ can have a VIP Darshan at the Guruvayur Temple. Rates vary from Rs 1,000 per devotee to Rs 4,500 for five Guruvayurappan devotees.

Corrupt Devaswom officials divert these formalities and accept bribes, allowing devotees to bypass the queues. On busy days, devotees might have to wait several hours for Darshan. Such disgraceful discriminations are exactly why Hindus want the government to free our temples. Do we need atheists and non-Hindus to manage our temples?

Antisocial elements linger around the Guruvayur prasadam counter. They indulge in thefts and harass ladies, especially the ones who are alone. These nefarious elements are easily identifiable since they always create a scramble and invade others’ personal space. Devaswom authorities and security personnel look the other way, which encourages such criminals.

On Saturday, stale food was seized from a hotel in Guruvayur. The stale meat was seized from an Arabic hotel called Taste Palace. The local health department discovered the stale food during an inspection in the afternoon.

The municipal health department recovered days-old meat and meat dishes. Hotel staff stored cooked food items and raw meat in the same freezer. An online menu of Taste Palace showed they served beef dishes.

The hotel operated without following any food safety measures that hotels should follow as per law. The food safety department notified the hotel about unsanitary behaviour and closed it. Several such eateries exist in the temple town.

Most businesses in and around Guruvayur town are owned by non-Hindus. They are least bothered about Hindu customs and traditions and take every opportunity to despise and insult us.

They also have a knack (especially halal hotels) for paying petty fines and opening their establishments when authorities shut them down. Some owners change the establishment’s name. Corruption exists in the Health Department, too.