Mansa Devi temple adds to FX reserves as dollar,pound offerings pour in

Till now,95 Australian dollars,60 Canadian dollars,10 American dollars,15 New Zealand dollars and 10 English pounds have been offered to the deity. Last year,other than dollars and pounds,foreign currencies of Nepal and the UAE were also received by the temple. Besides dollars,35 items of gold and 374 of silver have been donated to the temple this Navratras.

According to the Information and Broadcasting Centre set up by Haryana Information and Public Relations and Cultural Affairs Department,they had received donation in foreign currency for the first time last year.

Apart from disseminating information about number of devotees and donations,the Information and Broadcasting Centre has so far reunited 67 lost children with their parents. As many as 11 purses and three mobiles deposited in the Centre by the police have also been returned to the people concerned.

For the temple board that earns Rs 6-7 crore per year through offerings,it is not the dollars but the coins worth lakhs of rupees that make up the numbers.

The coins are first segregated by denomination. Once the coins have been segregated,they are put on a weighing machine.

At least 15-20 people work from 9 am to 7 pm daily.

During Navratras,nearly 60 boxes full of currency are emptied into the evaluation room daily.