A total of Tk88.65 lakh in cash, along with gold, silver and 18 types of foreign currency, was recovered from three donation cauldrons and five boxes at the shrine of Hazrat Shahjalal in Sylhet on Saturday.
The sealed cauldrons, locally known as degs, and donation boxes were opened for the fifth time, with counting beginning at 9:30 am in the presence of district administration officials.
According to shrine management records, the donations included Tk88,65,804 in cash, one bhori and 8.5 anas of gold and three bhori and 13 anas of silver.
The foreign currencies included 14 British pounds, 7,647 Indian rupees, 20 Thai baht, 93 Saudi riyals and smaller denominations, 11 Malaysian ringgit, 29 US dollars, 1,350.50 Omani baisa and 65 UAE dirhams.
Other currencies recovered were 15 Maldivian rufiyaa, 17 Qatari riyals and smaller denominations, seven euros and 33 cents, 100 Bahraini baisa, 10 Hong Kong dollars, one Kuwaiti dollar, 55 Nepalese rupees, 100 Pakistani rupees, 50 Russian rubles and 500 Sri Lankan rupees.
Letters containing prayers, requests and applications from devotees were also found in the donation boxes and cauldrons.
The latest counting took place before the introduction of a daily counting system approved by a newly formed management committee on 23 September to improve financial transparency.
The committee decided to appoint a manager, an accountant and an office assistant to oversee the counting, accounting and expenditure of donation funds.
However, the daily counting system has yet to begin because the recruitment process remains incomplete.
Sylhet Deputy Commissioner Abdullah Al Mamun said applications had been received and recruitment was under way.
“The recruitment process is ongoing, and CVs have been submitted. I hope the hiring process will be completed within next month. After that, the shrine’s money will be counted daily,” he said.
He added that the fifth counting had taken place one month and eight days after the previous round.
During the fourth counting on 19 September, the shrine received Tk88,92,966 in cash, one bhori, nine anas and two ratis of gold, along with foreign currencies from 15 countries.
At a meeting chaired by Commerce Minister Khandaker Abdul Muktadir on 23 September, the committee also decided how the donation funds would be allocated.
Under the decision, 35 per cent of donations would be allocated to shrine development and deposited in an account at Sonali Bank, while the remaining 65 per cent would cover daily operational costs and staff salaries and allowances.
