2024.09.22 (Vrindavan Today News): Shri Alok Goswami from Shri Radharaman Temple and Smt. Anagha Srinivasan, from Shri Rang Mandir; have been elected as the President and General Secretary of the newly formed temples’ alliance, ‘Braj-Vrindavan Devalaya Samiti’.
The first formal meeting of the Braj Vrindavan Devalaya Samiti (BVDS) was held at the Ranganath Temple, where the office bearers of the newly formed alliance were elected.
After the election, the discussions were held on preserving the rich temple traditions of Braj, its culture, ancient heritage, and environmental concerns. The organization will work towards the preservation and promotion of Braj’s temple traditions and original form.
Key focus areas include the protection of Braj’s forests, the Yamuna River, sacred ponds (kunds), the sacred Braj soil (Braj Raj), ancient temples, literature, and cow protection. The committee plans to convey decisions related to these aspects to the government.
During the meeting, the registration of the organization as society was approved by the ‘Excutive Board’ of the BVDS. Acharya Shrivatsa Goswami Maharaj from Gokulananda temple was elected as the Patron.
Goswami Krishnananda Bhatt (Lalita temple – Barsana), Kanhaiya Kaushik (Shrinath ji temple – Govardhan) and Shri Lakshmikant Saraswat (Sawaman Shaligram temple) were elected as Vice Presidents. Mahant Govind Sharma from Banshivat was elected as Treasurer, while Acharya Deepak Goswami (Bade Dauji temple) was elected as the Organising Secretary, responsible for adding new members in the organisation.
Shri Jagannath Poddar was appointed as the Joint Secretary cum Chief Executive Officer of the federation. Shri Krishna Balaram Goswami (Radha Damodar temple) was entrusted as the Spokesperson of the alliance.
A total of 25 members were elected to the executive committee, which included office bearers as well as prominent figures like Shri Gopinath Lal Dev Goswami (Gopinath Mandir), Shri Vijay Kishore Goswami (Madan Mohan Temple), Shri Krishna Gopalanand Goswami (Shyam Sundar Temple), Shri Anuj Goswami (Govind Dev), Shri Gopal Krishna Goswami ( Shadbhuj Mahaprabhu), Bhagwat Swaroop Sharma (Pisawa Ki Jhari), Shri Kanhaiya Lal Goswami (Banke Bihari Temple), Shri Suresh Acharya (Shri Ballabhacharya’s first seat Gokul), Shri Vikram Lavania (Bimal Bihari temple – Kamya Van), Shri Yagya Purush Goswami (Ladli ji Mandir – Barsana), Shri Krishna Murari Goswami (Nand Baba temple – Nandgaon), and Shri Gaurav Goswami (Keshav Dev Mandir – Mathura).
It should be noted that the numerous informal meetings have been held over the past year. The organization has garnered the membership of over fifty representatives from Braj’s ancient temples. Some crucial decisions were made for the protection of Braj’s ancient heritage and temple traditions. Additionally, a work plan for the next six months was prepared, with the purification of the Yamuna River being the top priority.
Other key objectives include preparing a protection plan for Braj’s environment, submitting this plan to the central and state governments, compiling a list of temples, pilgrimage sites, and shrines over 100 years old, and formulating a plan to support temples that are at risk of disappearing.
Among those present were Harishchandra Goswami, Bharat Goswami, Shambhu Dayal Panda, Balaram Krishna Goswami, Bharat Joshi, and Krishnan Swami.
