Work on the International Krishna Consciousness (Iskcon) temple complex, one of the City's major architectural, religious and cultural landmarks in the making, is fast nearing completion with the inauguration scheduled for April 30, 1997.

Forty-four days of religious programmes would precede the inauguration marking the installation of the idols of Lord Krishna, Balarama and Chaitanya in the sanctum sanctorum of the sprawling temple complex covering more than 6.5 acres of land on the Hare Krishna Hill on the West of Chord Road.

The inauguration of the ambitious project coincides with the centenary of Iskcon founder Srila Prabhupada: which is being celebrated during 1996&97, Madhu Pandit Dasa, Iskcon project director and architect of the complex, told reporters here today.

CENTENARY CELEBRATIONS: He said as part of the centenary celebrations, which would start on September 6 with Maha Vyasa Puja and Abhishek in all the 630 Iskcon centres around the world, a Bhaktivedanta Swami Centennial Foundation would be set up to rejuvenate Vedic culture and propagate the principles of Bhaktiyoga and Sankirtan Yajna. The foundation, during its first year of operations, would take up a project to identify old, historical and endangered temples in Karnataka and renovate them. The project would also include provisions for financial, technical and spiritual support to the caretakers of these temples.

After the inauguration of the temple complex, the foundation would take up programmes to educate the youth on values of Indian culture and techniques of self-control and spiritual life throughout the year. These would compensate for whatever was lacking in the modern education for the healthy and spiritual growth of modern-day individual, Mr Das said.

This year's Sri Krishna Janmashtami would be celebrated in a grand-scale on September 5. Over one lakh devotees are expected to visit the Iskcon centre here on the festival day, he said.

UNIQUE COMPLEX: The temple complex was unique inasmuch as it was an amalgamation of the features of modern and traditional architecture, he said and described it as "neo-classical style" of temple architecture. Most of traditional architectural features were drawn from the Chola style, while the designs of modern architecture used here were first of their kind in the country, he said.

He said the emphasis on modern architecture was to make the Iskcon centre here a "place of attraction" for the youth, who, he said, in general did not show any interest in visiting temples of traditional style. The Iskcon believed in undergoing spiritual experience by chanting God's name and hence special arrangements were made for the devotees to enter the sanctum sanctorum through a ramp with 108 steps by chanting the Lord's name as many times. The temple would have the country's tallest dhwaja stambha (50 feet) and the biggest kalasha (23-feet-high) besides a pushkarani(tank) which would be consecrated with water collected from 1,008 sources of holy water of the country.