Noida ISKCON temple plans 508-item Janmashtami bhog

At ISKCON’s Sector 33 temple in Noida, a planned 508-item Janmashtami bhog will include makhan mishri and kachoris alongside pizza, pasta and lasagna.

The temple has put up a large pandal decorated with real and artificial flowers. Its Janmashtami programme includes floral displays, silver swings for Laddu Gopal, devotional programmes and a Panchagavya Abhisheka after the midnight birth rituals. A performance by the Govinda Rock Band and programmes by children from Prahlad school are also planned.

More than 30 women devotees have been preparing the prasad while chanting, temple management committee member Budhimanta Das said. The menu was chosen with Krishna’s infant form in mind and includes cakes, biscuits, pastries, patties, parathas, puris, shakes and sweets alongside customary offerings.

Festivities are scheduled to resume at 4.30am with mangal aarti, darshan, chanting and prasad distribution. The temple plans to screen visitors with door-frame and hand-held metal detectors, while more than 1,500 volunteers are expected to assist crowds. Motorists should account for the traffic restrictions around the Sector 33 temple.