Know About Mandir
The majestic structure, more than 13 metres high, built of exquisite marble and Rajasthan sand stone was completed in less than two years from November, 2004 to October, 2006. The structure stands tall today as a testimony of a dream that came true with the blessings of Sri Sri Maa Kali. To accomplish this mammoth task was possible due to generous support from devotees from all quarters who donated in form of cash and kind and also the hard work put in by a team of dedicated devotees.
A germ of an idea floated by a few individuals without a concrete organization, land and resources has now culminated into not only a significant religious and cultural identity for the Bengali community of Vasant Kunj, but has also become a centre for free medical and education assistance to the needy and less privileged of the neighbourhood.
Today a defined team of Office Bearers and Members elected every two years manages the affairs of Mandir. The Samiti now has 497 Members.
The idea appeared simple but it was a herculean task to procure land from DDA, raise adequate funds for a temple project and complete other formalities with the authorities concerned including settling a legal case with the local RWA.
The land cost was about Rs. 14 Lacs and the cost of new Mandir was about Rs. 90 Lacs. A glimpse at the marble plaques and inscriptions on the corridor walls in the Mandir premises reveals individual and organizational donations towards this cause in addition to the significant contributions made in kind and cash whose names may not be appearing in the plaques. This did not come overnight. It was extremely difficult to motivate the community for the project. Anxious moments prevailed to meet the deadline for procuring the land because of inadequate funds availability at the right time and also because of the ongoing litigation. Human resources were limited to process the project with authorities and complete legal formalities. Differing opinions prevailed as to whether to start the new temple with whatever funds were available / committed or wait till a comfortable funds position was achieved. Fortunately the former prevailed and with Sri Sri Maa Kali’s divine blessings there was no looking back.
It is worthwhile to mention that the fund raising involved a series of meetings with participation of local Bengali Clubs namely Basant Manjari, Basanta Beethi, Amra Sabai, Basantika and individuals who helped significantly to generate moneys through individual donations, loans and donations from corporate bodies. Door to door appeal and superhuman effort finally resulted in what we see today.
