Sai Baba Temple of Shirdi receives donations worth Rs 5.97 crore

Sai Baba Temple of Shirdi has received donations worth Rs 5.97 crore in three days.

The samadhi centenary festival began in Maharashtra's Shirdi on October 17 and concluded on October 19.

Shri Saibaba Sansthan Trust's Chief Executive Officer (CEO) Rubal Agrawal confirmed that devotees from the country and abroad have donated Rs 2.52 crore in donation boxes kept in the temple premises. 

The donation counters in the temple received Rs 1.46 crore cash while Rs 1.41 crore was donated through online transactions, debit cards, cheques and demand drafts.

In addition to this, devotees also donated gold and silver items worth Rs 28.24 lakh and foreign currencies worth Rs 24.55 lakh, Agrawal said.

Apart from these donations, the temple trust earned Rs 78 lakh through paid darshan and online passes and Rs 28.51 lakh through distribution of 'laddoos' (ball-shaped sweets), she said.

Nearly three lakh devotees from across the country and abroad visited the shrine during the three-day festival which concluded Friday, she added.

Saibaba, a widely revered saint, is believed to have taken samadhi in Shirdi on October 15, 1918. 

(With PTI Inputs)