Ahead of the Dussehra festival, the Indian community in the United Arab Emirates’ Dubai will witness the grand inauguration of a Hindu Temple in Dubai. The grand opening on October 4 will be attended by Sheikh Nahyan bin Mubarak Al Nahyan, minister of tolerance and coexistence and the Indian envoy to the UAE Sunjay Sudhir.
The temple was built in three years and clearances from the officials in the Community Development Authority, Dubai Municipality, Dubai Police and the Dubai Land Department were obtained even when the pandemic was at its peak. The land for the temple was given by the UAE government in 2019.
The temple authorities said that people from all faiths are welcome to visit the temple.
The temple’s distinctive architecture is likely to attract tourists as well. It is built on an area of 80,000 square feet. It is located in the Worship Village area of Dubai’s Jebel Ali.
The specialty of the temple is that it houses 16 deities including Shiva, Krishna, Ganesh and Mahalakshmi along with the Guru Granth Sahib. It also boasts nine brass spires or kalashas on the outer domes, the upper prayer section is fitted with 105 brass bells, a skylight from which a large, pink lotus sculpture is suspended and a large prayer hall that can be booked for events.
“In 2019 the government gave us new land, and allowed us to build another temple in the Jebel Ali area. The temple was built in Dubai in three years. We have built such a temple where every Hindu can practice their religion, it also has the idols of 16 deities and the Guru Darbar,” Raju Shroff, trustee of the Hindu temple, said while speaking to News18 Hindi. He is the chairman of the Regal Group, which is one of the oldest businesses in the country.
He said: “The idols of 16 deities were kept so that all the Hindus can go to the same temple and pray whether they are from north India or south India.”
Shroff told News18 Hindi that devotees can book their visit via a QR code. The website for the temple also allows devotees to book visits, events and darshan.
He also talked about the history of temples in Dubai and said that there were only two temples in Dubai, the first of which was built in 1958. The newly inaugurated Hindu temple will be the second temple.
