Shirdi town, known for its popular Saibaba temple, will go on strike from May 1 to protest the proposed deployment of CISF security at the temple. The strike will be indefinite and called for by various organizations from different industries. However, the temple officials claim that the Shri Saibaba Sansthan Trust (SSST) has no involvement in the strike, and the temple will function as usual. The CISF security deployment is in response to an intel report about potential threats or attacks. The town people argue that CISF is not equipped to handle unique security challenges of a religious shrine like Shirdi. The proposed shutdown would affect the local economy, which relies entirely on religious tourism. The townies also fear that CISF taking over the SSST temple security would result in huge restrictions for locals, tourists, and others, affecting their employment opportunities.
