New toilets, bathrooms will be open 24 hours for pilgrims visiting the shrine

The famous Khaja Banda Nawaz Dargah, frequented by thousands of pilgrims every day, now has a modern multi-purpose block consisting of kitchen-cum-dining hall with store room, exclusive toilets and bathrooms for the pilgrims visiting the dargah.

Up until now, the dargah had limited toilets and bathrooms which remained always overcrowded due to the heavy flow of pilgrims. At the time of the annual Urs, the situation used to become very difficult.

The new block constructed at a cost of Rs. 2.25 crore is entirely funded by the Karnataka Urban Infrastructure Development Finance Corporation-North Karnataka Urban Sector Investment Programme (KUIFDFC-NKUSIP) with the Asian Development Bank (ADB).

The multipurpose block has 125 toilets and 39 bathrooms, with exclusive bathroom and toilets for the physically challenged persons.

The kitchen facility has six cubicles, a tone room and a slaughter room also. The entire block is constructed on 1,098 square meters and this would be maintained by Sulab International. Inaugurating the new facility on the dargah premises, Municipal Administration and Minority Affairs Minister Qamarul Islam said that the long felt need of the pilgrims has been fulfilled.

Another toilet block constructed at a cost of Rs. 40 lakh has been completed and handed over to the authorities, he said.

Mr. Qamarul said that the multipurpose block would be available for the use of the general public and the pilgrims visiting the dargah for 24 hours.

The annual urs of the Khaja Banda Nawaz Dargah is scheduled to begin on August 30.

Sajjada Nasheen of the Khaja Banda Nawaz Darga Dr. Syed Shah Khusroo Hussaini, in his brief address, thanked the State government and the former Union Minister M. Mallikarjun Kharge for sanctioning the multipurpose block to the dargah.

source: http://www.thehindu.com / The Hindu / Home> National /by T.V. Sivanandan / Kalaburagi – August 26th, 2015