Hindu Temples Worldwide Find Guidance Of ITCX.

ITCX Takes the Lead as the Guiding Light for Global Hindu Temples. But, silent on Free Hindu Temples from Govt Control.

G Hariharan | HENB | Tirupati | Feb 20, 2025:: The International Temples Convention and Expo (ITCX) aims to support Hindu temples outside India by sharing best practices in temple management from prominent Indian temples, such as the Tirupati Tirumala Temple, Madurai Meenakshi Temple, and Siddhi Vinayak Temple in Mumbai.

S Rajendran Chettiar, managing trustee of several Hindu temples in Sri Lanka, including the iconic Bhaktha Hanuman Temple at Ramboda, highlighted the importance of ITCX in disseminating knowledge on temple management. “Managing temples in Sri Lanka, where Hindus comprise only 16% of the population, is challenging. Despite financial constraints, we strive to celebrate festivals in a grand manner.”

The Bhaktha Hanuman Temple, a 26ft-tall iconic landmark, attracts devotees worldwide. According to legend, Lord Hanuman first set foot on this hillock while searching for Goddess Sita.

Other notable temples in Sri Lanka, such as the Kathiresan Temple and Muthumariamman Kathirvelayutha Swamy Temple, established by the Chettinad community from Tamil Nadu 200 years ago, also draw large crowds of devotees.

S Rajendran Chettiar, a trustee from Sri Lanka, highlighted the key takeaways from the International Temples Convention and Expo (ITCX). He noted that the convention provided valuable insights into best practices in temple management, including crowd management, sanitation standards, and services for devotees.

Chettiar plans to replicate some of these best practices in Hindu temples back home. He manages several temples in Sri Lanka, including the iconic Bhaktha Hanuman Temple at Ramboda.

Suman Dalal, a trustee from Nepal, also attended the convention. He highlighted the similarities in temple management between India and Nepal. Dalal praised ITCX as a great platform to take Hinduism to the next level globally.

Selvendran from Canada shared the success story of the Tirupati Venkatachalapathi temple. He manages the temple, which was established in 2013. Selvendran noted that the temple observes daily rituals and annual festivals like Brahmotsavams and Radhasapthami on a grand note.

The temple has recently introduced the distribution of Annaprasadams, ensuring continuous prasadam distribution from opening to closing time. Selvendran added that the temple attracts nearly 3,000 devotees during weekends and important festivals.

Selvendran also shared plans to take up gold plating works at the temple. Additionally, they plan to introduce virtual darshan for devotees and have linked up with a service provider to develop a suitable application.

The International Temples Convention and Expo (ITCX) is posed as a game-changer for Hindu temples worldwide. This year’s event (the 2nd edition-, 17-19 Feb), held in Tirupati, brought together over 1,500 temples from around the globe to share best practices and innovative strategies for temple management. The first edition of ITCX was held in Varanasai in 2023.

The recent International Temples Convention and Expo (ITCX) 2025 in Tirupati, facilitated by TDP-BJP leaders and hosted by RSS-VHP workforce, surprisingly sidestepped the contentious issue of liberating Hindu temples from government controls.

Despite the event’s focus on temple management, sustainability, and innovation, the glaring omission of this critical issue raised eyebrows. The convention’s silence on this matter was deafening, especially given the longstanding demand from Hindu groups and temple authorities for greater autonomy and freedom from government interference in Indian context.
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