Temples across the State have collected over ₹11 crore as rent from their properties this month through an online portal launched last month by Chief Minister M.K. Stalin. Hindu Religious and Charitable Endowments (HR&CE) Minister P.K. Sekarbabu said on Tuesday that the facility to pay online using an individual code for each temple, along with details of tenants, would allow the issuance of online receipts.
“The system was not streamlined earlier. People used to pay randomly. We have instructed temples to call up tenants and remind them about rental dues. Due to the pandemic, we have told tenants that they can pay as much as they can and we are glad to note that people are paying up despite difficulties,” he said.
Those who can afford are paying according to the new rental rates and those who cannot are paying as per the old one. “We are now in the process of creating a central database that will help us know how many properties are being rented by temples and what the total amount being collected as rent is. A committee to revise and fix rents will soon be formed,” Mr. Sekarbabu added.
HR&CE Commissioner J. Kumaragurubaran said of the 44,286 temples under the administration of the department in the State, 5,670 received an annual income of over ₹10,000. Of these, 1602 have uploaded details so far. The ₹11 crore was collected through 14,625 transactions, he said.
