New york: Hindu Temple of Tristates in White Plains here, which has been approved by the City Council, plans to begin construction in summer, reports suggest.
It has been reportedly conducting monthly prayers, festivals and community events in Royal Palace; an award-winning Indian restaurant which claims to blend “fragrant, pungent, and warm spices from all over India”; which included Hanuman Chalisa, Mata Chowki, Maha Shivaratri, etc.
Proposed design and architecture of Hindu Temple at Tristates New York
According to reports, construction of this about 15,000-square-foot two-storey temple on the 1.75 acre plot will cost up to $2 million. Besides a sanctuary for worship, it also plans to include cultural and community center, day-care center, senior citizens program, library, conference facility and classrooms; and besides White Plains, it will also serve Hindus living from adjoining areas of Connecticut, New Jersey and New York states. There are about 5,000 Hindu families in Westchester County in which White Plains is located.
Meanwhile, distinguished Hindu statesman Rajan Zed, in a statement in Nevada (USA) today, applauded efforts of temple-project leaders and White Plains and surrounding area community to realize this Hindu temple complex.
Rajan Zed, who is President of Universal Society of Hinduism, further said that it was important to pass on Hindu spirituality, concepts and traditions to coming generations amidst so many distractions in the consumerist society and hoped that this temple would focus in this direction. Zed stressed that instead of running after materialism; we should focus on inner search and realization of Self and work towards achieving moksha (liberation), which was the goal of Hinduism.
Temple trustees, per its website, include Jethinder Abbi, Arun Bhagirath, Om Dhiman, Bharti Gupta, Anil Joshi, Suresh Khanna, Jagdish Mitter, S. Murthy, Narendra Paul, Harry Singh and Jyotin Thaker.
Nicknamed “The Birthplace of the State of New York”, affluent White Plains came into being in 1683. Thomas M. Roach is the Mayor of White Plains, about 25 miles north of Manhattan, which claims “Suburban Amenities with an Urban Vibeâ€. Prominent people associated with it include Facebook CEO Mark Zuckerberg, Unification Church founder Sun Myung Moon, boxer Boyd Melson and actors Dan Duryea and James Whitmore.
The Construction of the Temple has very interesting story in past.  According to the the messages of Trustees on its website, “Some months ago at a Hanuman Chalisa event, a young student approached us and asked if there was something he could do for the temple construction. He explained that he was in his final term in the Boy Scouts and in order to achieve its highest citation, he was required to perform a substantial community service. Being a Hindu, he had told his counselors, that he would want to help the Hindu temple of tristates. At that time, there was very little we could ask him to do, but early this year, he followed up with an email reminding us that he was very keen on doing something for the temple. ”
“We forwarded his email to our Architect Ms. Dipti Shah, who spoke to this young man and learnt that the Boy Scouts were willing to plant shrubs and trees, build stone walls or anything that required physical labor. The Boy Scout would be responsible for collecting the necessary funds for the material, engage and lead other boy scouts to help and complete the project in time to the satisfaction of the Scout’s counselors. Ms. Shah met with the Counselors and discussed few ideas with them, to which they were very satisfied with the scope of the project. As a result, we have decided, this Young man, under the direction of the Boy Scouts of America will construct the entrance pillars on North Street. This entrance pillars shall be the first construction activity at the site.”, further read the message.