Mangaluru: Installing a steam boiler fuelled by firewood, dried tender coconut shells, and coconut shells has helped Mahatobhara Sri Mahalingeshwara Temple in Puttur almost completely eliminate the use of cooking gas. Temple authorities expect the Rs 4 lakh project to reduce annual fuel expenses by around Rs 85 lakh.The temple earlier used an average of eight commercial LPG cylinders a day to prepare anna prasada. Following the installation of the boiler, rice, sambar, palya and payasa are cooked using steam, with little or no dependence on LPG.
The temple serves anna prasada to 3,000 to 5,000 devotees, including students, every day. The number rises further during special days and temple festivals.Temple committee president Panjigudde Ishwara Bhat told TOI that after the new committee added more items, including payasa, to the menu, the number of devotees receiving anna prasada and the requirement for LPG cylinders increased considerably.“When an LPG supply problem arose due to the situation around the Strait of Hormuz amid the West Asia crisis, a huge challenge emerged for the temple management. At that time, cooking temporarily started using firewood.“Nearly 2,500 students from the nearby schools receive anna prasada from the temple. When the price of LPG increased, we constructed a separate kitchen to cook food using firewood. Donors started offering the rice, vegetables and firewood required to prepare anna prasada. After introducing firewood, we stopped using LPG completely,” said Bhat.Later, with the support of Karnataka Bank and Canara Bank, the temple installed a steam boiler that requires no LPG fuel, he said.“The speciality of this boiler is that it consumes very little firewood. In fact, devotees bring an average of 1,000 tender coconuts to offer abhisheka to the deity on Mondays. We dry all those tender coconut shells and use them to fuel the boiler. Additionally, the coconut shells, which were earlier discarded, are also being used to cook anna prasada,” he added.
