Babas with gold worth crores a big draw at mela

PRAYAGRAJ: Two seers at the Maha Kumbh are attracting crowds because of the gold ornaments and other luxury items they adorn.

Mahamandaleshwar Arun Giri of Shri Panchadashanam Aawahan Akhara wears gemstone rings, gold bracelets, and watches made of diamond, all weighing 6.7kg.

SK Narayan Giri, referred to as Golden Baba and ‘Golden Giri’ (mountain of gold), wears about 4kg of jewellery, worth nearly Rs 6 crore. He was made mahamandaleshwar of Niranjini Akhara.

Arun Giri has planted more than one crore saplings and pledged to distribute 51,000 saplings among devotees at Maha Kumbh. He believes his ornaments transmit energy that helps him in his meditation.

Another seer, Adityanand Giri from Gujarat, who will reach Kumbh on Jan 23, wears 5kg of gold that he believes emits energy of the Sun god.