Bypassed by highway, Hanogi Mata temple wears deserted look
A must-visited temple for several decades, the revered Hanogi Mata temple, a compulsory stopover for every motorist on the Chandigarh-Manali highway along the mighty Beas, wore a deserted look even during the nine-day Shardiya Navratras.
The reason: A motorable tunnel on the highway now bypasses the temple. Also, the old highway that passed through the temple has been shut at Davada following a downpour during the monsoon.
The newly constructed 12.5-km twin tube tunnel between the Pandoh dam and Aut, as part of the Kiratpur-Manali four-lane highway project, bypasses the landslide-prone stretch that goes via the Hanogi Mata temple in the 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.
Old-timers say that this was the first time that the temple wore a deserted look during the Navratras. Temple priest Acharya Vivek Sharma says that earlier, devotees thronged the temple throughout the year, especially on festive days like Navratras and the temple remained open even at night.
“After the four-lane highway was opened for traffic last year, the temple remains empty. Now, only a handful of people come here. Before the construction of the four-lane highway, all traffic used to pass through the temple courtyard and almost every person used to take the blessings of the Goddess,” he said.
Former BJP legislator Jawahar Thakur, who often offers prayers at the temple, says that the government should restore the old highway passing through the Hanogi Mata Temple.
After the old highway’s closure, the residents of some local panchayats are facing problems and devotees are not able to reach the temple. “The government should restore the old highway so that the number of devotees in the temple increases and people also benefit from it,” he adds.
In the past, the Hanogi Mata Temple near Pandoh had remained in the news due to heavy landslides that led to the snapping of the road link for days between Mandi and Kullu towns.
After the closure of the road link, the Hanogi temple authorities were at the forefront running community kitchens for stranded people, mainly lorry drivers. The famous temple was partially damaged in a big landslide in 2020. However, the sanctum sanctorum of the temple was safe.
A mound of boulders and debris from the hilltop had dislocated and hit the Hanogi Mata Temple and shops near it.
The National Highways Authority of India (NHAI) is executing the four-lane road project that will shorten the distance between Kiratpur in Punjab and Manali from 232 km to 195 km, reducing travel time by three hours. This month, the NHAI opened an eight-km bypass, part of the four-lane road project, in Mandi town constructed at a cost of Rs 725 crore. It has three major and seven minor bridges, along with four tunnels.
“On every road trip to Manali, we briefly halt at the Hanogi temple to seek the blessings of the Goddess and pray for our safe onward journey,” says Sarika Ghosh, a tourist from Kolkata heading to Manali.
“This time, our cab driver told us that we have already crossed the temple as the new highway passes through several tunnels, bridges and underpasses,” she adds. The main temple of Hanogi Mata is at the edge of a cliff across the Beas.
Landslide-prone
- The newly constructed 12.5-km twin tube tunnel between the Pandoh dam and Aut, as part of the Kiratpur-Manali four-lane highway project, bypasses the landslide-prone stretch that goes via the Hanogi Mata temple in Drang of Mandi
- Old-timers say this was the first time that the temple wore a deserted look during Navratras
