HUBBALLI: Not many years ago, there were close to 1,000 Brahmin families in the temple town of Gokarna, located on the west coast of Karnataka. A walk on the temple street near the shores, hymns could be heard from almost every household. But today, the number of Brahmins residing in Gokarna has come down to 700.
Gokarna today finds its place in Karnataka as most preferred coastal destination for international and domestic tourists. But in the course, it lost its sheen as temple town, which finds its mention in even Srimad Bhagwat Purana. Today the water sources in the town have been degraded as much as hillocks around it, which were opened for building resorts and other tourism facilities.
Worried over these developments, local families and those having their roots in Gokarna have now settled elsewhere are coming together for a three-day meet scheduled to be held in the first week of December in Gokarna. This is the first time such a meeting of people, who are connected with Gokarna, is taking place. The confluence is now known as Non-Resident Gokarna (NRG) Parivar and recently, a webpage on the same was launched.
Speaking with The New Sunday Express, Vishwanath Gokarn, author and president of NRG Parivar, said families are coming together to uplift the lost glory of the Temple Town of Karnataka.
“Today, Gokarna is plagued with several issues. The unplanned development and influx of tourism infrastructure have changed the look of the town completely and the sanctity of the town needs to be restored. The water in Kotiteertha, the holy pond, next to Mahabaleshwara temple is fast getting polluted. Water in many wells in Gokarna is unfit to drink. We have a list of shortfalls in Gokarna town and we want to address them one-by-one. During the meet, all these issues will be discussed,” he said.
The conference is expected to see the participation of 200-300 people from Gokarna, who will be coming from different parts of the country and abroad.
Prof Narayan Hosmane, noted scientist in USA, and Nitish Gokran, Principal Secretary to the Uttar Pradesh Government, are some of the big names who will be attending the meet.