Audit reports of the Kerala Guruvayur Sri Krishna Temple, covering gold, silver, ivory, and manjadikuru (red lucky seeds), show that despite the Sri Krishna temple’s significant wealth, its management systems are weak, unclear, and prone to misuse. These findings highlighted in audit reports from the state audit department for the years 2019-20 and 2020-21, as reported by the Times of India.
Kerala Guruvayur Sri Krishna Temple audit reveals 25 crore discrepancy
The audit also flagged issues with the management of elephant tusks and ivory at the Guruvayur Devaswom’s Punnathur Kotta sanctuary. According to the 2019-20 audit, the Devaswom not turn over 522.86 kg of ivory it collected from tusk-trimming and ivory handling that year to the forest department.
The report indicates that between April and November 2019, tusks and ivory chips weighing 505 kg (Sept 26, 2019), 14.18 kg (Sept 19, 2019), 2.35 kg (2018-19 balance), 730 g (April 22, 2019), 320 g (July 14, 2019), and 280 g (July 29, 2019) either removed or kept without proper documentation. The necessary mahazar (seizure memo) and handover receipts were also missing, as stated by TOI, which cited the audit reports.
Officials Cite Old Records
According to a letter from the assistant conservator of forests, the Kerala Guruvayur Sri Krishna Temple instructed to provide details of the tusks and ivory chips in its possession in 10 days. However, the information never submitted, nor the tusks or ivory given to the forest department, the audit noted, as per TOI.
This raises concerns about the possibility that large amounts of ivory may exist without any legal oversight or accountability. In response to the audit findings, Guruvayur Devaswom chairman V K Vijayan said that the audit report refers to a time before the current board’s tenure.
Read also: Realme Launches GT8 and GT8 Pro in China with Snapdragon 8 Elite and 7,000mAh Batteries
1 Comment