Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Wednesday inaugurated the Bochasanwasi Akshar Purushottam Swaminarayan Sanstha (BAPS) Hindu Mandir in Abu Dhabi, the UAE's first Hindu temple.
The prime minister took part in the ceremonies to dedicate the temple to the people while wearing a stole, a light pink silk dhoti, and a kurta, along with a sleeveless jacket.
The temple was constructed on a 27-acre plot in Abu Mreikhah, next to Al Rahba off the Dubai-Abu Dhabi Sheikh Zayed Highway, at a cost of about Rs 700 crore. Prior to its official opening, the prime minister also offered water in the temple's virtual Ganga and Yamuna rivers.
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PM Modi has now inaugurated the second major religious site in recent weeks. In January, he presided over the consecration ceremony for the Ram temple in Ayodhya, which was built on the site of a demolished 16th-century mosque after a decades-long court battle.
The Prime Minister is in the UAE on a two-day visit, his seventh visit to the Emirates since 2015 and his third in the last eight months.
About Abu Dhabi’s BAPS Hindu Temple
The first temple in the United Arab Emirates has been built on 13.5 acres of land provided by Sheikh Mohamed bin Zayed Al Nahyan, the current president of the UAE and the former crown prince, in 2015. He gave an extra 13.5 acres in 2019.
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The temple is a symbol of harmony amongst various faiths. It was built on land granted by a Muslim monarch for a Hindu temple, with a Buddhist foundation designer, a Sikh project manager, and a Catholic lead architect. The director of the construction company is of Jain descent, while the construction company is a Parsi group.
According to temple officials, the grand temple has been built in accordance with an old style of construction and creation described in the Shilpa and Sthapathya Shastras, Hindu books which describe the art of mandir architecture and construction.
Pink sandstone from Rajasthan is used on the mandir's outside facade. Italian marble covers the inside of the mandir, which is centred by two domes known as "The Dome of Harmony" and "The Dome of Peace." No iron material is used in the temple.
“The architectural methods have been clubbed with scientific techniques here. Over 300 high-tech sensors have been installed at every level of the temple to measure temperature, pressure, and movement (seismic activity). The sensors will provide live data for research. If there is any earthquake in the region, the temple will detect it, and we will be able to study,” Swami Brahmaviharidas, head of international relations for BAPS, told news agency PTI.
The Arab country of 9 million is home to about 3.5 million Indian nationals alone, making it the largest population of Indian citizens in the world.
