Tamil Nadu’s HR&CE Department successfully reclaims temple properties worth Rs 5,700 crore

Was the DMK Government asleep while temple lands were being encroached upon ?

Chennai – Since 2021, Tamil Nadu’s ‘Hindu Religious and Charitable Endowments (HR&CE) Department has successfully reclaimed temple properties, including land, plots, and buildings, worth Rs 5,700 crore. As per the information released by the Tamil Nadu Government, a total of 6,071 acres of land across the State has been recovered from the encroachers and handed over to the respective temples.

Creation of ‘Digital Land Resource Database’ for the temple properties

HR&CE Minister, P K Sekar Babu, has announced the creation of a digital land resource database for temple properties. The reclaimed lands or properties will be protected with fences, and plaques designating temple ownership will be installed. Mr P K Sekar Babu underscored the successful implementation of the database, covering 1,00,067 acres of land owned by temples within the HR&CE Department’s jurisdiction, out of the total 4,00,078 acres.

BJP demands to dissolve the HR&CE Department

Ahead of the 2021 assembly elections, Sadhguru Jaggi Vasudev of the ‘Isha Foundation’ initiated the ‘Free Tamil Nadu’s Temples’ campaign. Now, BJP State President K Annamalai has promised to abolish the HR&CE Department. This move is seen as a political manoeuvre by Chief Minister M K Stalin’s administration. The DMK party has been facing accusations of being ‘anti-Hindu’.