CHENNAI: The Hindu Religious and Charitable Endowments (HR&CE) Department has directed all major temples in Tamil Nadu to completely ban devotees from carrying mobile phones inside temple premises from September 1.
The department has also instructed temples not to allow photographs or videos of deities, reels or other recordings on temple premises. Permission should not be given for photographs or videos involving VIPs, public figures or film personalities inside temples.
The department has also instructed temple authorities, through a circular, to set up safe storage facilities at temple entrances so devotees can deposit their phones before entering. A uniform fee of Rs 5 per mobile phone can be collected, and a receipt must be issued through the Integrated Temple Management System (ITMS), the circular said.
The department said the directions were issued in line with an order of the Madurai Bench of the Madras High Court dated December 2, 2022. Earlier circulars had also directed temples to prevent devotees from carrying mobile phones inside and provide facilities to keep them safely.
The latest circular said some devotees were still using mobile phones inside temple premises to take photographs, record videos, take selfies and shoot short videos or reels for social media.
Such activities, it said, affected the peaceful and spiritual atmosphere of temples and caused inconvenience to other devotees.
Temple authorities have been directed to put up clear boards at entrances and outside temple premises stating that mobile phone use is prohibited. The restriction should also be announced through public address systems.