Nepal: Devotees throng temples on occasion of Krishna Janmashtami

A large number of Hindu devotees thronged Krishna temples in capital Kathmandu and offered their prayers to celebrate Krishna Janmashtami-the birth anniversary of Lord Krishna on Monday.

Tens of thousands of devotees have flocked the Shree Krishna Mandir in Patan and Lalitpur since early morning and make offerings of fruits, sweets, and clothes.

But the devotees were unhappy because of the slow pace of reconstruction work at the Krishna temple that was ravaged during the earthquake as is the third consecutive year that the Hindu devotees have been offering prayers and worshipping the idol of lord Krishna by taking out of the temple.

"Though it has been more than three and half years that the cultural heritage sites are not reconstructed. The slow pace of reconstruction work by the government has compelled the people to worship the idol and offer prayers from outside the temple," Puja Pariyar, a devotee in Krishna Mandir of Patan complained while talking with ANI.

On April 25, 2015, a massive earthquake struck Nepal in which 9,000 people were killed and over 800,000 homes including historical and cultural monuments were destroyed in the disaster.

"People must have shown concerns and interest over it. Because of the ignorance and not playing a role to force government to reconstruct the damaged temple in a fastly manner," Ranjit Dahal another devotee complained.

Krishna Mandir which lies in Patan Durbar Square, a World Heritage Site was also devastated during the earthquake but it still stands surrounded by metal polls which the authorities fears of collapsing if the devotees are allowed to enter the premises.