THOOTHUKUDI: The Hindu Religious & Charity Endowment (HR&CE) department has monetised 211 kg of gold bars belonging to Tiruchendur Murugan Temple under the gold investment bonds with the SBI bank. As of Friday, the total value of the bars minted out of gold offered to Lord Murugan, is estimated to be worth Rs 122 crore.
The transaction took place in the presence of retired justice R Mala, Fisheries Minister Anitha R Radhakrishnan, HR&CE Minister Sekar Babu, and SBI officials at Tiruchendur. The HR&CE authorities handed over the gold bars to SBI regional general manager Govind Narayanan Goel.
Minister Sekar Babu said the gold offerings that are not required for decorating deities, were cleaned of stones and impurities before being melted into bars at the government mint in Mumbai.
The gold bars have been invested under bonds so as to draw interest out of it to carry out temple welfare works, he said. The state government issued a G.O. on September 9, 2021, and constituted a committee comprising retired Supreme Court judge Duraisamy Raju, retired High Court judges Ravichandra Babu and R Mala to monitor the process. CM MK Stalin had assured the gold monetisation scheme during the grants debate in in 2021.