India LPG supply crisis: Community kitchens in Bengal temples redraw menu, some suspend serving bhog altogether

Mayer Bari was the residence of Sri Sarada Devi, the spiritual consort of Sri Ramakrishna. She lived in this house from 1909 until her passing in 1920.

According to officials, the tradition of serving prasad dates back to the time when Sarada Devi lived here and personally oversaw the care of visiting devotees. The distribution of prasad was stopped briefly at Mayer Bari during the COVID-19 pandemic, as there were restrictions on gatherings.

Around 500 devotees visit the institution daily, out of whom 300 to 400 usually eat the bhog served in the afternoon. The devotees who want to have bhog usually collect lunch coupons between 9:30 am and 10:30 am. Officials said they would require four LPG cylinders daily to serve devotees, and the same would not be possible to procure amid the supply disruption.

Due to the supply crisis, ISKCON Kolkata and Jagannath Temple in Digha have also taken several decisions regarding the distribution of bhog-prasad.

Speaking to The Indian Express, Radharamn Das, Vice-President, ISKCON Kolkata, said, “At ISKCON Kolkata, we distribute free dinner every evening at 7:30 pm to anyone who comes. However, due to the current LPG supply crisis, we are concerned about how to sustain these services if gas availability is further affected. Our kitchens in Kolkata are not equipped for large-scale wood-fire cooking, so a disruption or reduction in LPG supply would directly impact the quantity of prasadam we can prepare.”

As a precautionary measure, the kitchen in ISKCON Kolkata has begun simplifying meals for their resident brahmacharis and sannyasis by preparing khichdi instead of separate items like rice, dal, sabji, and chapatis. “This helps us save nearly 60-70 per cent of cooking gas, ensuring that we can continue distributing prasadam to the public despite the constraints. We are closely monitoring the situation and praying that normal LPG supply resumes soon so that our service can continue without interruption,” said Das.

The situation in Mayapur ISKCON, though, is relatively stable, as most of the cooking is done in the traditional manner with wood fire.

Radharamn Das said, “Nearly 95 per cent of the cooking in Mayapur is done using wood-fired kitchens, so the current shortage of LPG cylinders has not significantly affected the daily preparation and distribution of prasadam.”

According to him, prasadam distribution in Mayapur continues as usual, serving thousands of devotees and pilgrims every day.

Jagannath Dham Temple in Digha

At the Jagannath Dham Temple in Digha, the number of devotees who are served breakfast, lunch, and dinner daily has been reduced to 750 from 3,000 due to the current LPG crisis.

Radharamn Das, who is also the chief priest and trustee of the Jagannath Dham Temple, said, “Our effort is to ensure that prasadam distribution continues as much as possible, because feeding people with sanctified food is a central part of the service of Lord Jagannath. We sincerely hope that the supply situation stabilises soon so that the temple can once again serve prasadam at the previous scale to all visiting devotees and pilgrims.”