Ahmednagar: Shirdi Saibaba Sansthan Trust is set to melt 155 kg gold and 6000 kg silver it received as donations, into medals and coins for the devotees.
A total of 450 kg of gold was donated by the devotees to Saibaba temple of which, 155 kg of gold will be melted. The Saibaba temple in Shirdi, which is one of the major religious centres in the country, witnesses devotees from across India and abroad throughout the year. These devotees drop their donations into the donation boxes. The donations run into crores including gold and silver.
The trust's treasury currently has around 450 kg of gold and 6000 kg of silver. The Sansthan at Tuljapur is considering melting the gold and silver received as donations into coins and medals for devotees. A team of Tuljapur Sansthan met officials of Saibaba Sansthan in Shirdi in this regard.
When Saibaba Sansthan officials were asked they said process will be initiated to melt the donated gold and silver into coins and medals. While the gold medals would weigh 5 grams and 10 grams, the coins would weigh 5 grams and 10 grams, officials said.
Earlier, the Sai Institute requested the government to melt 155 kg of gold and 6,000 kg of silver and also sought permission to make medals and coins from it. Now, after getting permission from the government, the trust will go ahead to make gold and silver coins and medals.
According to sources, the temple recorded a huge footfall during Diwali and the trust received Rs 17.50 crore from donations during this period.
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