Bhadraj Mandir Tourism Fair held amidst piety & pomp

MUSSOORIE: 17 Aug: The Bhadraj Temple Tourism Fair, an annual festival held every year immediately after Independence Day was celebrated with great devotion and gaiety today. It is a festival organised every year in the month of August, usually after 15 August. It�s a premier festival in which the devotees from as far as Saharanpur and Sahaspur participate in large numbers. The temple is dedicated to �Balram� or �Bhadraj�, as he is called locally, the elder brother of Krishna. The temple falls in the Bhadraj ward of Nagar Palika, Mussoorie.
After 30 minutes of difficult travel from Mussoorie in a vehicle, one reaches the end of the road at Village Doodhli. From here, it is trek of 5 kilometres to reach the top where the temple is situated at 7,000 feet above sea level.
More than a thousand devotees started converging on the temple from early morning from the surrounding areas, which varied from Sahaspur to Jaunsar and Himachal to seek the blessing of Bhadraj. They offered milk to the idol of the Deity.
Many had come from as far as Delhi especially for this �Mela� despite the inclement weather. Incessant rains could not dampen the spirit of the devotees.
The �Bhadraj Mandir Samiti� had made the necessary arrangements for the devotees at the temple premises.
The Secretary of the Mandir Samiti, Balbir Chauhan, welcomed the special invitee Mussoorie Palika Chairman OP Uniyal and the President of the Samiti, Colonel JS Tomar (Retd).
After seeking blessings at the temple, Uniyal said, �The Bhadraj Temple Fair has grown in stature since its inception as is evident from the turnout of devotees in this weather.� He also commended the work done by the Mandir Samiti in the maintenance of the temple, which was not an easy task as there is no connecting road to the temple. He added that such �Melas� are important to preserve the social and cultural ethos of Garhwal region. He promised Rs 30,000 for the development of the temple. He also said that he would take the matter to the Tourism Minister and reinstate the funding of Rs 10, 000 which was provided each year by the ministry.
Colonel Tomar highlighted the fact that the festival was 150 years old and the temple was revered among the villagers of the surrounding area.
 He said, �The temple has been renovated by the �Samiti� and efforts are on to bring water supply in the temple zone as it remains a big problem.�
Balbir Singh Chauhan, Samiti Secretary, also highlighted the need for recognition by the Tourism Department as it had all the possibilities of becoming an important tourism destination, providing employment and earning revenue for the department. The temple dates back to 1817, when during the British Raj, an altercation between the Lambardar and the villagers over some temple issues led to damage to the idol. The Secretary of the Mandir Samiti Balbir Singh Chauhan added that devotees offer milk and butter at the temple especially from the newly bought cow. He further added that the devotees seek blessings for their livestock at the temple.
The temple is fast gaining popularity among the devotees.
Ward members Kedar Singh Chauhan, Nand Lal, Jai Kumar Gupta, Jasbir Kaur, Kanta Bisht along with BJP Mahila Morcha President, Mussoorie, Sarojini Kaintura, Sita Panwar, Nimita Kumain, Balwant Singh, Rajwant Rawat, Vijay Ramola, Bharat Kumain, Gajey Singh Tomar, Matbar Singh, Surai Singh, Kundan Singh, Rampal Singh, Bharat Singh, Jarath Singh, Nathi Panwar and Upendar Singh also sought blessings at the temple.
It is a historic temple worth visiting for its view of the Doon Valley and the Chakrata Range.