Nayagarh: Miscreants allegedly stole cash from the donation box along with other valuables including jewellery of the deities from the newly-built Ram temple situated atop Giri-Govardhan hill at Fatehgarh in Odisha’s Nayagarh district, a source said Wednesday.
The incident took place Tuesday night. The incident came to light after the temple priest, who arrived at the shrine for morning rituals Wednesday, discovered that the main door of the temple was open, and the ‘Hundi’ (temple donation box) was found empty. Several pieces of gold, silver jewellery and cash were stolen from the temple, the source informed.
Subsequently, the temple committee alerted Fatehgarh police, who initiated an investigation into the matter.
The exact value of the stolen items is yet to be determined, although it is suspected to be worth lakhs of rupees.
Comments from neither the temple committee members nor the police could be obtained regarding the incident.
It can be mentioned here that coinciding with Ram temple consecration in Ayodhya, the 73-foot-tall shrine of Lord Ram was inaugurated at Fatehgarh in the district.
The temple was reportedly built with donations from villagers and devotees from across the state at over Rs10 crore. Fategarh residents contributed half of the funds required for the temple’s construction. The temple project, initiated in 2017, garnered widespread support and involvement from the local community.
PNN