Devotee from Mumbai dies at Shirdi temple

In the second incident of its kind in the last 15 days, a devotee in queue at the Shri Sai Baba Samadhi Mandir in Shirdi died, raising questions about facilities at the venue.

Thousands of devotees visit the temple in Shirdi every day, especially in the evenings and early mornings for the puja. After witnessing the ‘Shej aarti’ in the evening, Mumbai resident Dilip Chaurasia, 35, stood in line again to attend the ‘Kakad aarti’ which is performed at 4.30am.

This is a common practice among devotees who sleep in the queue itself. Chaurasia did likewise, but when the temple staff arrived to open the gates, they found Chaurasia lying unconscious. He was taken to the hospital where he was declared dead. The doctors are still to ascertain the cause of death.

A few days ago on March 10, a military man from Belgaum who had come to the temple with his family, collapsed while standing in queue.

Shirdi residents say that although the ventilation system may seem sufficient, facilities en route need to improve. There have also been reports of the exhaust fans being shut down at times. There are plans of replacing the existing system with central air conditioners but action will only be taken after the new trustees take charge.

The trust board of the Sai Baba Sansthan Trust, Shirdi, was dissolved by the Aurangabad bench of the Mumbai high court last week after a petition was filed about their overextended term.