Dearth of archaks now hits temples in Karnataka

Kolar: Although places of worship could reopen on June 8, temples in Karnataka face a huge shortage of assistant archaks.

There are more than three lakh temples across the state, including 36,000 under the muzrai department. While archaks for muzrai temples are appointed by the government, appointments in others are left to the discretion of their managing trusts.

Most assistant Archaks working in non-muzrai temples returned to their hometowns and villages during the lockdown and many are unlikely to return, Manjunath Dixit, president, Rajya Aagama Traya Mahamandali, one of the four state bodies of archaks, said.

Dixit said rules stipulate that muzrai temple archaks need to have a graduate degree in Agama Shastra from a reputed university, while appointments for non-muzrai temples are made based on experience of the person and his knowledge of various rituals.

Bengaluru alone has 1,125 muzrai temples and more than 50,000 private temples, said S Srivatsa, president of the State Association of Archaks, Aagamika and Employees of muzrai Temples.

Srivatsa, whose association has over 25,000 members, is hopeful of assistant Archaks returning to their temples. “Since assistant archaks mostly perform pooja and other rituals, they may not be well versed with other life skills and are likely to return to work once the situation eases,” he said.

Girish Jois, head priest, Sri Karya Siddi Anjaneya Swamy temple in Kamakshipalya, Bengaluru, said assistant archaks are mostly from Udupi, Dakshina Kannada and Uttara Kannada districts.

“Since there were no devotees during the lockdown, private temples faced a resource crunch. Many assistant archaks were not paid their promised salaries [about Rs 10,000] and many left,” Jois said.