Mumbai’s two-century-old Shree Siddhivinayaka temple Trust has reportedly come for the rescue of Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s pet project ‘Gold Monetisation Scheme’ (GMS).
The Temple Trust has decided to move 40 kg of its gold reserves to government’s Gold Monetisation Scheme. The Famous Temple will soon send the 40 kg gold to one of the government-controlled firms where it will be melted (as the temple gold is mostly in the form of ornaments) and converted to gold biscuits. The pure yield after melting is expected to shrink to around 30 kg.
The banks pay 2.25-2.50 percent interest per year, which is likely to earn nearly Rs 69 lakh in annual interest for the temple. The current gold reserves of the Siddhivinayak temple stand at a staggering 165 kg. The trust already has 10 kg of this gold reserve deposited in the State Bank of India at 1 per cent annual interest.
The Gold Monetisation Scheme was launched by Modi a month ago. Although high interest was offered, it has received poor response so far. After Siddhivinayaka, temples like Tirumala, Shirdi etc are expected to follow suit.
