Maryada Mahotsav - 143rd - (03) Accommodation Arrangements

Dear Readers, first thing an outside visitor in any place needs is accommodation. When the event is all-important festival like Maryada Mahotsav, arranging accommodation for several thousand guests can be daunting task in a medium sized town like Gangasahar. Nevertheless, the people of Gangasahar did achieve total success on this count. With the importance of accommodation reigning very high in my mind, I talked to Shri Inderchandji Dugar,

a senior representative of Accommodation Arrangement Committee. Over a customary cup of sweet Indian tea and plateful of biscuits, Shri Dugarji told me that Gangasahar has hosted big ticket events in past and a Maryada Mahotsav was held here about 5 years ago. However, this time, they have received lot more visitors but he added that there is no shortage of accommodation.

It will not be out of place to mention here that apart from arranging accommodation for lay visitors, the accommodation arrangement committee also took care to accommodate 261 Sadhvishris, 79 Munishris, 104 Samanijis and 1 Samanji.

In Shri Dugarji’s opinion, improvement in all types of transport facilities in past 5 years was main reason for the higher number of guests. Several new trains have now linked Bikaner and Jaipur to various parts of the country – including Assam and far-flung states of South. Computerized train ticket reservation system, low cost flights to/from many parts of the country to Jaipur and significant improvement in road transport facilities also help calm down the nerves of wary travelers.

As Chief of Seth Tolaram Bafna Academy (STBA), Shri Dugarji said that there were three campuses under STBA, which can accommodate up to 1000 persons. Accommodation was available in several other schools and guest houses as well. Of course, construction of 154 temporary cottages was an extra cushion for Shri Dugarji and his team.

He added that in past 5 years, hundreds of people have constructed new houses. Plus many new guests houses and wedding halls have come up in recent years. Because of better transport options, out of appx. 1800 terapanthi families originating from Gangasahar, appx. 90% plus have come back home to attend the 143rd Maryada Mahotsav and most of them offered rooms in their homes to accommodate other visitors. Volunteers from Accommodation Arrangement Committee had compiled a list of home owners who had offered to accommodate guests in their homes; visited those homes in advance and checked the rooms/facilities available and then directed the guests which could be accommodated in those places as per mutual convenience of the guests and home owners.

Shri Mohanlalji Bhansali, the person who hosted this correspondent also hosted four other persons. Shri Bhansaliji mentioned that on one of the previous busy occasions, he had hosted 35 persons in his home. Dear readers, apart from free of cost accommodation, most families offer all meals and snacks and take care of various other general daily needs of the guests such as laundry and local transport, they help arrange tickets for return journey and provide packed meals for the journey back home. I am a living witness to all this. I and of my co-guests had enjoyed all these and much more at Shri Bhansalji’s home. Thank you is a small word. So let me say a BIG THANK YOU to Shri Bhansaliji and all others wonderful hosts of Gangasahar.

Obviously there were thousand and one other things (if not more) simultaneously being taken care of by hard working people of Gangasahar at that time. I learned that the best way for me to find out and bring some of those insights to you in one go was to meet Shri Lunkaranji Chhajer, Mahamantri of Maryada Mahotsav Vyavastha Samiti. So I decided to meet him later.

Dear Readers, for on this and some other events, plus a write up on “Prize distribution ceremony for winners of Agam Manthan Pratiyogita”, I request you to please re-visit soon.