News Reports
NASIK, INDIA, September 1, 2003: Thousands of sadhus began the third Shahi Snan (royal bath) in Ramkund (a sacred lake) exactly at 8.00 am on the auspicious day of Vrishi Panchami, amidst tight police monitoring following the death of 35 persons during the second royal bath on August 27. Sadhus of various akaras (monastic orders) of the Tvaishnava sect reached Ramkund in grand procession complete with silver palanquins. Some sadhus carried carved silver maces and spears with silver rods. Others held golden icons of their deities and flags. About 150,000 pilgrims from different parts of the country are expected to take a holy dip on Monday. The final bath at Trimbakeshwar would be held on September 7. Ramkund will be closed for common pilgrims from 5.00 am to 12.00 pm and both entry and exit route for pilgrims have been re-planned. Common pilgrims will also be restricted from entering the the Shahi Snan route and allowed entry only after 12 pm. About nine thousand police personnel including three companies of state reserve police force have been deployed.
Our Hinduism Today reporter at Nasik, Mr. Rajiv Malik, reports that Shri Satish Shukla, the head of the priest’s organization Ganga Godavari Panchkothi Purohit Sangh, was highly critical of the stopping of pilgrims many kilometres away from the main Ram Kund area where Shahi Snans took place. Satish Shukla told him, “The administration and police must manage the Mela in such a way that an ordinary pilgrim also gets the chance to watch the Shahi Snans. Hundreds of thousands of people who had come especially to watch their beloved saints have their royal bath were thoroughly disappointed by their being prevented from having darshana (sight) of saints having their Shahi Snan.” He said that when pilgrims are around, the whole area resonates with energy, which is not happening now due to putting up of barricades and stopping the people many kilometres away from the venue of the royal bath.