NEWS-INDIA: Web sites taking devotees for a ride

[Frederick Noronha <fred@bytesforall.org>]

Web sites taking devotees for a ride

by Sanu George, India Abroad News Service.

Thiruvananthapuram, Jan 11 - Cyber age has brought its share of worries for
the Sree Krishna temple at Guruvayoor in Kerala, with several Web sites
apparently taking devotees, especially those abroad, for a ride by accepting
orders for sanctified offerings from the temple, for a charge of course.

Close to 300 Web sites are said to be taking orders for offerings.

"A month ago we came to know through some people that certain Web sites are
providing online services by sending the 'prasadam' (sanctified offerings)
and also collecting money for conducting the temple proceedings," Guruvayoor
Temple administrator K.M. Satheesan told India Abroad News Service.

"This is a criminal offense and our executive meeting is scheduled for
January 15 to take steps for combating this. This is against the law and we
have not given permission to any Web site to conduct these on our behalf,"
said Satheesan. "We are also worried about the quality of the prasadam."

"According to reports received we have come to know that these Web sites are
charging exorbitant sums of money for conducting temple rites and sale of
'Kalabham'. For instance, if any devotee approaches us through the post,
demanding a packet of Kalabham, we charge Rs.5 toward the cost of Kalabham
and Rs.3 toward postage charges. Instead these Web sites are charging close
to $30 toward these. It is the believers in foreign countries who have been
taken for a ride," said Satheesan.

"We have already sent notices to eight Web sites which we have come across
saying that what they are doing is illegal. There is a provision in the IT
(Information Technology) Act...forbidding these activities by Web sites.
After we meet, there is definitely going to be action against these Web
sites," said Satheesan.

He said the temple's official Web site is being readied and would be
commissioned shortly. "Our home page is already hosted and anyone could log
on to http.personal.vsnl.com/devasom," he said.

According to reports from Guruvayoor, in the first week of January close to
10,000 prasadam packets were sent by post to devotees in North India alone
from the Kunnamkulam post office, with a letter mentioning that the prasadam
was sanctified through temple rites.

--India Abroad News Service