Himachal: Hanogi Mata temple away from the highway lies deserted

Himachal Pradesh: A must-visit temple for several decades, the iconic Hanogi Mata Mandir, a mandatory stop for every driver on the Chandigarh-Manali highway along the mighty Beas river, wears a deserted look even during the nine-day Sharadiya Navratras. The reason: a motorable tunnel on the highway now bypasses the temple. Also, the old highway that passed through the temple has been closed at Dawda following heavy rains during the monsoon. The newly constructed 12.5-km-long twin tube tunnel between Pandoh dam and Aut, as part of the Kiratpur-Manali four-lane highway project, bypasses the landslide-prone stretch that passes through the Hanogi Mata Mandir in Drang assembly constituency of Mandi district. The temple of Hanogi Mata is dedicated to Goddess Saraswati and is located on the road. All drivers stop here for a few minutes to offer prayers to the goddess, who fulfils the wishes of her devotees.

Elderly people say that this is the first time that the temple has fallen silent during the Navratras. Acharya Vivek Sharma, the priest of the temple, says that earlier the temple used to be crowded with devotees throughout the year, especially on festivals like Navratri and the temple used to remain open even at night. He said, “The temple remains empty since the opening of the four-lane highway last year. Now only a few people come here. Before the four-lane highway was built, all the traffic used to pass through the temple premises and almost everyone used to take the blessings of the goddess.” Former BJP MLA Jawahar Thakur, who often worships at the temple, says that the government should restore the old highway passing through the Hanogi Mata temple. Due to the closure of the old highway, people of some local panchayats are facing problems and devotees are not able to reach the temple. He said, “The government should restore the old highway, so that the number of devotees in the temple increases and people also get its benefits.” Recently, the Hanogi Mata temple near Pandoh was in the news due to a massive landslide, due to which road connectivity between Mandi and Kullu cities was cut off for several days. After road connectivity was shut, Hanogi temple authorities were at the forefront of running community kitchens for stranded people, mainly truck drivers. The famous temple was partially damaged in a major landslide in 2020. However, the sanctum sanctorum of the temple was safe. A pile of stones and debris from the hilltop had come off and fallen on the Hanogi Mata temple and shops near it. The National Highways Authority of India (NHAI) is executing a four-lane road project that will reduce the distance between Kiratpur and Manali in Punjab from 232 km to 195 km, reducing the travel time by three hours. This month, the NHAI opened an eight-km bypass in Mandi town under the four-lane road project constructed at a cost of Rs 725 crore. It has three major and seven minor bridges, as well as four tunnels. Sarika Ghosh, a tourist travelling from Kolkata to Manali, says, “On every road trip to Manali, we stop briefly at the Hanogi temple to seek the goddess’ blessings and pray for our safe onward journey.” “This time, our cab driver told us that we had already passed the temple as the new highway passes through several tunnels, bridges and underpasses,” she adds. The main temple of Hanogi Mata is on the edge of a cliff across the Beas river.