HINDU TEMPLE TAKES SHAPE
82,000 square feet structure in Jebel Ali on track to be ready by Dussehra next year
We are a multi-faith Hindu temple and we want to incorporate all major deities worshipped by various Hindu sects. Everyone will be able to visit the temple.”
The new Hindu temple coming up in Dubai’s Jebel Ali area is fast taking shape with the main structure of the building now up, a year after its ground-breaking ceremony on August 29, 2020. The temple management has released a time-lapse video that shows the construction progress so far.
Located next to the Guru Nanak Darbar Gurudwara in Jebel Ali, the temple is an extension of the Sindhi Guru Darbar in Bur Dubai, according to the Community Development Authority of Dubai.
This temple is in addition to the BAPS Hindu Mandir, the first traditional Hindu temple in Abu Dhabi, coming up in Abu Mureikha area.
Raju Shroff, one of the trustees of the Dubai Hindu temple, yesterday said more than half of the construction work is now complete.
Finishing work remains
“We are almost 50-52 per cent complete at the moment. The structure is up and ready. What is left now is the finishing work,” he said.
The temple will help devotees offer prayers to multiple Hindu deities. “We will have 15 Hindu deities and the Guru Granth Sahib, the holy book of Sikhs. We have already placed orders for the idols. They will be coming in soon from India,” said Shroff.
“We are a multi-faith Hindu temple and we want to incorporate all major deities worshipped by various Hindu sects. Everyone will be able to visit the temple.”
The prayer hall will be 5,000 sqft with a huge dome in the centre with 14m diameter. A giant skylight from which large decorative bells will be suspended in the middle of the prayer hall will be another highlight. An outdoor terrace to do different rituals is also being arranged.
On the ground level, a banquet hall and multipurpose rooms to hold wedding ceremonies and other community activities and events are being readied.
“We have the community centre on the ground floor and the prayer hall on the first floor,” said Shroff. The total built up area will be 82,000 sqft comprising two basements, the ground floor and the first floor, he confirmed.
Work on track
“Kalash [apex of the spire], which plays a big role in the temple structure, is in brass golden colour and it is also coming from India,” he said.
Once the construction is complete, the Kalash can be seen shining even from Shaikh Zayed Road.
With the construction being on track despite the challenges posed by the Covid-19 pandemic, the temple management is on schedule to open it by Dussehra festival next year, just ahead of the largest Hindu festival Diwali, also known as the Festival of Lights.
Modern design
While the Abu Dhabi temple is being built with handcarved pink sandstones, the Dubai temple has opted not to follow the traditional design and architecture. “Ours is not an orthodox temple. This is inclined towards the modern temple structure, incorporating a lot of elements of the Arabian architecture outside.
“It will be a contemporary looking temple because we are in Dubai, which is young and dynamic and we want to incorporate the ethos of Dubai. We want to show an amalgamation of design that fits the Arabian society,” said Shroff.
He said there will be no religious connotations outside the temple. “We will only have Hindu geometrical designs that denote peace and harmony. The aim of the temple is also to promote peace and harmony,” added Shroff.
Raju Shroff | Temple trustee