2023.04.05 (Vrindavan Today News): Failing to control the growing crowd at Banke Bihari Temple, the local administration of Mathura – Vrindavan may opt for online registration of the devotees visiting the Banke Bihari Darshan.
The administration has been trying different ways to control the crowd after the crowd crush turned fatal during the Mangala Aarati on Shri Krishna Janmashtami last year. There have been incidents when women, children and older people fainted in the crushing crowd of Banke Bihari.
In an effort to manage the overwhelming crowds visiting Shri Banke Bihari temple in Vrindavan for darshan, the local administration held a meeting with traders and servitors of the temple to discuss potential solutions.
During the meeting held on Tuesday at Mohan Bagh, the administration officials proposed constructing a corridor with a metal net that was four to five feet high, running from Vidyapeeth Chauraha to the temple. However, the proposal was met with outright rejection and outrage from the traders in attendance. Following this, the local people suggested online registration as a means of crowd control, which was agreed upon by the administration.
With the implementation of the online registration system, devotees will be able to access the temple only after completing the registration process, while the local people will be able to have darshan by showing their Aadhaar card. The temple management will coordinate with the administration to ensure the smooth implementation of this new system.
Speaking on the occasion, Additional Municipal Commissioner Kranti Shekhar Singh said that a draft will be prepared based on the suggestions made by the traders and servitors in attendance. A strategy for the implementation of the online registration system will be formulated after consulting with higher officials to ensure that the system can effectively control the huge crowds that gather at the temple.
Praveen Malik, the Circle Officer of Police in Vrindavan, the Station House Officer of Police Vijay Kumar Singh, Banke Bihari Temple Manager Munish Sharma, Outpost Incharge Rajkumar, Vyapar Mandal President Alok Bansal, Vyapar Mandal Chairman Dhanendra Agarwal Bobby, Alokik Sharma, Govind Khandelwal, and Mukesh Krishna Sharma (traders), Gyanendra Kishore Goswami, Himanshu Goswami, Dinesh Goswami (servitors of Banke Bihari Temple), among others.
The decision to implement an online registration system is expected to help the local administration manage the massive crowds that visit Shri Banke Bihari temple in Vrindavan. The move is also expected to enhance the safety and security of the devotees.
VT’s view Banke Bihari temple has become much publicized temple of Vrindavan. Everyone who comes to Vrindavan, visit the Banke Bihari Temple. People from the NCR and the neighboring places visit Vrindavan on every weekend or holidays. They try to reach the temple on their own cars, by parking them at the nearest place available for parking. Those who park their cars / buses at the official parking, they take the services of E-rickshaws. Thousands of E-rickshaws are being operated in Vrindavan, which takes the inner roads / lanes to transport the devotees to the temple, as they are not allowed in some main roads leading to the temple. The locals can’t roam freely in their own city because of the traffic congestion. They are captivated in their homes on the weekends. After trying the different measures to control the crowd visiting in Vrindavan, the online registration process is the best option to regulate the crowd visiting Vrindavan.
