The Saibaba temple trust here has built what is billed to be Asia's biggest ‘prasadalaya', a dining hall with a seating capacity of 5,500, making it possible to feed more than 100,000 devotees daily. The Sri Saibaba Sansthan Trust, on an average, spends Rs 19 crore annually on feeding pilgrims visiting Shirdi.
The prasadalaya, constructed at a cost of Rs 24 crore, was inaugurated by President Pratibha Patil on Tuesday. The complex is built on 7.5 acres of land and has a built-up area of 183,000 sq feet. It is 700 metres from the main Saibaba temple.
A gigantic hall has been constructed on the ground floor, which can seat 3,500 devotees. Two separate halls have been constructed on the first floor with a seating capacity of 1,000 each.
Fourteen domes made of polycarbonate and Manglorean tiles have been con structed to give ample natural light to the hall, so that power cuts do not disturb the activities in the prasadalaya during daytime.
"The work of the prasadalaya has been going on for 15 months and it will be fully functional in two months."
The meals served at the Sansthan are at highly subsidised rates of Rs 5.
Huge refrigerating rooms have been built for keeping vegetables fresh. Most of the cooking will be done with solar energy.
"All the cooking will be done with modern machines, giving top priority to hygiene."
According to the trust, Shirdi has become one of India's most visited pilgrim places after Tirupati in Andhra Pradesh. On a normal day, around 20,000 devotees visit Shirdi whereas the number increases to about 60,000 during a festival.
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