MAHABODHI

Nobody died in the serial bomb blasts that rocked Bodh Gaya last Sunday, fortunately. But the explosions did shatter the tranquillity of a town known for the Mahabodhi Temple, the foremost pilgrimage centre for the Buddhists.

What surprised everybody was that the blasts happened despite alerts from various agencies that the temple was a terror target. The latest one was from the Ministry of Home Affairs on July 3. Earlier, the Intelligence Bureau (IB) had alerted Bihar Police in June about the targets. “The Bodh Gaya temple was a long standing target and we had been reminding the state agencies about it. But our warnings were not taken seriously,” said a senior official of the IB. Bodh Gaya drew around 8.73 lakh domestic and 2.28 lakh foreign tourists in 2012. “The impact of the blasts would be known only later, in the months of December-January when many important Buddhist prayers are performed,” said Navin Kumar, deputy GM of Bihar State Tourism Development Corporation.

There are 52 monasteries that cater to pilgrims. Over 150 hotels in and around the town cater to the rest of the tourists who arrive to be at the place where Gautam Buddha received enlightenment. Add to them hundreds of big and small shops and vendors. Although nobody died in the serial blasts, it blew the lid over security praparedenss of the pilgrim site.