The construction of a special corridor for the Banke Bihari Temple in Mathura, Uttar Pradesh, has been approved by the Allahabad High Court. This corridor, inspired by the Kashi-Vishwanath Temple Corridor, will provide three convenient routes for devotees to reach the Krishna temple.
The project will cost Rs 262 crore and will be funded by the Uttar Pradesh government. It will cover an area of 5 acres and accommodate up to 10,000 devotees at a time. Devotees will have the option to approach the temple from Jugalghat, Vidyapeeth intersection, and Jadoun parking.
The corridor will surround the temple and consist of two floors. The ground floor of the entrance complex will span 11,300 square meters and will include shops selling puja items and a corridor featuring Krishna paintings. Additionally, there will be a waiting room of 3,500 square meters for pilgrims and 5,113 square meters of open space.
The proposal for the corridor faced opposition from local residents who expressed concerns about displacement and disruption to their daily lives. Priests and shopkeepers even wrote a letter in their own blood to the Chief Minister, urging him to halt the project.
However, on Monday, the Allahabad High Court bench, led by Chief Justice Pritinker Diwaker and Justice Ashutosh Srivastava, granted approval for the Uttar Pradesh government’s scheme. The state government assured that the construction would not impede devotees from offering prayers at the Banke Bihari Temple.
The Banke Bihari Temple in Vrindavan is a highly revered pilgrimage site for Krishna devotees in North India.
