Rajasthan's finance department has approved about Rs 23 crore for the renovation, beautification and development of religious tourist destinations.
Shahnawaz Akhtar visits Karni Mata temple near Bikaner where scores of devotees turn up every morning to seek blessings from the deity and her favourite rats. Legend has it that the rats of the temple are in fact reincarnations of the people of the Charan community.
India's largest cow hospital provides care for 1,600 cows, bulls, oxen, that are sick, diseased, injured or deformed. With wards for cows with breast cancer, cows that have lost their legs in road accidents, cows that have been operated upon to remove plastic from their bellies, the hospice is a tourist attraction.
Rediff.com lists a few temples that shun tradition and prefer a rather unusual look. Here are some of the world's most bizarre places of worship.
