THE Jain community has done a great service to a very important cause of national importance by standing up tall and strong against the nomination of its sacred site of Sammed Shikharji in the parasnath Hills as a tourist destination. Though small in number, the Jain community crossed all dividing lines such as politics and stood as one man to oppose stoutly the move to turn its religious site as a tourist destination. At no cost would it allow any violation of norms of piety in that location. For, once a place becomes a tourist destination, a no-holds-barred situation arises taking advantage of which tourists indulge in all sorts of activities, crassly commercial and shamelessly immoral. The members of the Jain community did not want anything like that to take place at Sammed Shikharji at the cost of piety and purity that the site represented.

This unified resistance by the members of the Jain community -- no matter its sectoral division like Digambar or Shwetambar schools -- made Prime Minister Mr. Narendra Modi take notice of the issue in all seriousness. He realised the sanity in the Jain argument and decided to put an end to the issue by ordering a stay on tourism at Sammed Shikharji.

On the surface, the issue may appear simple. In reality, it is quite complicated. In fact, the Sammed Shikharji issue has brought into sharp focus the ills and evils of tourism as a sector in which the nation appears to be investing its money and mind rather insanely. There are several places of religious pilgrimages and sanctity that have been turned into tourist destination. In the name of religious tourism, the Government has been lending a lot of official assistance for many religious sites to be converted into tourist destinations. And in most such places, all sorts of undesirable activities keep taking place, reducing the piety and sanctity religion and worship through ages bring in.

One such example is a place in Vidarbha (Maharashtra) -- (Shegaon where Sant-Shreshtha Shri Gajanan Maharaj appeared and spent his life in moral resurgence of the community. In the process, he earned a great following of devotees spread across the world). There is no doubt that the premises of Shri Gajanan Maharaj Temple is a great example of cleanliness and good management. Other properties belonging to the Temple Trust -- like residential arrangements for visitors -- are also maintained in the best possible manner. But, when one steps out of those premises, one runs into scores and scores of liquor shops and meat shops that cater to all the vile habits and needs of people. Legally, stopping all such activities is not possible, the local administration might say in its own defence. But, that is only a lame defence. The most important aspect of places of religious importance, nurturing human faith, is their sanctity -- that is terribly badly assailed by presence of cheap commerce.

In many other places in the country, similar examples dot the landscape in big numbers. Wherever tourism becomes the main activity, values such as piety are effected first -- which is a universal experience.

That was the reason why the Jain community rose as one man to oppose conversion of Sammed Shikharji in the Parasnath Hills into a tourist destination. The nation will never stop thanking the Jain community for its courage of conviction. In fact, the Jain community’s participation in overall national business is quite high, particularly in the light of its small numerical number. Despite this background, the entire community chose to ignore the call of cheap commerce and insisted upon keeping the piety and sanctity of Sammed Shikharji intact, no matter the cost.

This courage of conviction needs to be appreciated. It must be recorded in national consciousness that the Jain community must be given a standing ovation.

Though the suggestion may sound outlandish, this scribe would prefer to make it anyway -- that the Government should review its policy on tourism and create new norms so that all places attracting religious tourism would be protected from undesirable and cheap commerce by way of which liquor and meat etc are sold as items of luxury and need. At countless tourist destinations, flesh trade also thrives -- which should be an anathema to any society strictly speaking. All such activities need to be banned from all locations with places of worship -- so that the piety and sanctity of the locations are safeguarded. The Jain community deserves a genuine appreciation for its firm stand.