Divine Dividends

In the tapestry of global economics, few assets are as resilient or culturally deep-rooted as India’s "Temple Economy." Although it has its origins in the faith tradition, the spiritual economy is also a source of employment on a very large scale. Religious tourism, in the year 2022, attracted 1,439 million people, contributing about  ₹1.34 lakh crore to the economy.  It is on track to provide 140 million jobs by the year of 2030. The tourism infrastructure sector, particularly around the religious sites, is also going through a paradigm shift. 

According to a projection made for FY24-25, the number of pilgrims has registered a 19% increase in bookings of accommodations at 56 major religious sites, indicating more interest in staying, sightseeing and other associated activities. Also, the number of visitors to Prayagraj, Puri, Amritsar and Tirupati has registered double-digit increases. Large religious festivals remain a driving factor behind vast economic activity, which extends economic boost beyond the temple itself. For example, the Maha Kumbh Mela 2025 has been estimated to have attracted over 150 million pilgrims, generating trillions of rupees in economic activity in terms of various industries like hospitality, transport and so forth. These festivals not only generate vast amounts of revenue but also help in improving the infrastructure.

The real estate and retail sectors have also started to be impacted by spiritual tourism. It has been reported that major centres for pilgrimage are now being shown interest in by hotel chains and retail service companies owing to the steady flow of visitors. This also goes to show that the temple economy has entered yet another cycle that contributes to overall growth. This shift reflects a broader 'post-financialisation' of religious hubs where sacred land is increasingly treated as a high-yield financial asset by institutional investors.

The Multi-Faith Economic Engine

India’s spiritual economy is uniquely pluralistic. The Hindu temples like the Tirumala temple in Tirupati and the Ram Mandir in Ayodhya attract massive capital, and the economic contribution is spread across every major faith. The economic magnitude of this engine can be best understood by looking at the record budget for FY 2024-25, worth ₹5,142 crores, as approved by the Tirumala Tirupati Devasthanams (TTD), with human resources and social welfare expenditure equal to or even exceeding the budget of some small states in India. 

The Ram Mandir in Ayodhya has triggered a record infrastructure development and the current development spree has ensured that the town of Ayodhya attracts investments worth over ₹85,000 crores for highway development, luxury hotels and development work on an international airport, positioning Ayodhya as a pivotal global center for heritage-driven tourism, projected to contribute approximately ₹25,000 crores to annual state tax revenue by 2026.

The sacred sites like the Char Dham and Varanasi act as "town-shapers." The Kashi Vishwanath Corridor has reportedly injected over ₹1.25 lakh crore into the Uttar Pradesh economy since 2021. The Golden Temple in Amritsar is also not just a spiritual centre, it supports local farming, textile work and hospitality, making it a hub of community life. Shrines like Ajmer Sharif and Delhi’s Nizamuddin Dargah help small local economies thrive, especially through crafts, perfumes (ittars) and food tourism. Sites of Buddhist importance such as Bodh Gaya and Sarnath bring in foreign visitors from Japan, Thailand and South Korea, generating valuable income for the region.

The Kashi Vishwanath Transformation

The Kashi Vishwanath Dham Corridor in Varanasi serves as the gold standard for religious infrastructure. Before the 2021 redevelopment, the temple was accessible via narrow and very congested lanes. Today, the project has linked the temple directly to the Ganga River, creating a 5-lakh-square-foot complex. The footfall grew from 7 million visitors annually in 2019 to over 100 million in 2024-25.The incomes for local boatmen, weavers, and street vendors have surged by 30-40%.Even the property values in the vicinity of the temple have risen by 300%, attracting major hotel chains and luxury retail.

Faith & Finance: Where the Money Flows

With billions of rupees flowing into religious coffers through donations (hundi), grants and government schemes like PRASHAD (Pilgrimage Rejuvenation and Spiritual Heritage Augmentation Drive 2015), the question of fund utilization is central to the "Faith Economy." 

The Right Path: Productive Use of Funds

When managed transparently, religious funds provide a parallel social security system. For example, The Tirumala Tirupati Devasthanam (TTD) in Andhra Pradesh operates one of India's largest free hospitals and educational institutions, while various Sikh Gurdwara Committees across the country run some of India’s largest free hospitals and educational institutions. These funds are increasingly being used to build "last-mile" connectivity like the ropeway to Vaishno Devi in Jammu, improved airport facilities near Shirdi in Maharashtra and a clean drinking water project in Somnath, which benefits pilgrims and locals as well. During national emergencies like the COVID-19 pandemic, religious bodies donated thousands of crores for oxygen supply and provided millions of meals.

The Shadow Side: Misuse and Lack of Transparency

The absence of a uniform regulatory framework has raised very serious concerns about the misuse of religious funds. In Tamil Nadu and Himachal Pradesh, the high courts have intervened to prevent the state governments from diverting temple revenues towards non-religious welfare schemes, affirming that such funds belong exclusively to the deity and its devotees. In many small and unorganised shrines, the lack of public audits has raised allegations of corruption including money laundering and misappropriation by private trustees. There also have been tensions between commercialisation and sanctity as legal battles question whether revenues should be allocated to administrative overheads instead of temple upkeep and traditional rituals. 

To ensure this accrued wealth is protected, the Indian judiciary has erected a strong legal firewall that prevents the diversion of religious funds to any other purpose, whether it is secular or commercial. In one major legal triumph, in the case of ‘Thirunelly Temple Devaswom vs. State of Kerala’, (decided in 2025), it has been unambiguously held by the Supreme Court  has emphasised that temple properties are held in trust for the deity, who is a 'perpetual minor' in the eyes of the law. It has also been held in ‘Nandeeswarar Temple’(decided in 2025) that the government is unable to divert temple properties to construct commercial complexes because temple properties are religious funds that can in no way form part of "the lifeline" to distressed government-owned banks.

International Context: The "Diversity Gap"

Many nations with high scenic tourism (beaches/mountains) suffer from seasonality—they are only attractive when the weather is good. In contrast, India’s religious sites are "recession-proof" and "weather-proof." A devotee will visit Kashi or Amritsar regardless of the economy or the heat. Countries with mono-cultural or purely secular landscapes often lack this spiritual magnet, leading to shorter visitor stays and lower per-capita spending compared to India’s multi-day pilgrimage circuits. A concrete parallel is found in Saudi Arabia’s Vision 2030, which aims to host 30 million pilgrims annually. Much like the Kashi Vishwanath transformation, the expansion of the Grand Mosque in Mecca demonstrates how state-led religious infrastructure can provide a consistent, non-oil revenue stream that remains resilient even during global economic downturns.

Conclusion: Securing the Sacred Economy

For India to become a $5 trillion economy, the "Temple Economy" must move from the informal to the formal sector. This will require independent auditing bodies, digital donation tracking and a clear legal separation between state funds and religious endowments. If managed with integrity, the architecture of faith can continue to be the architecture of India’s prosperity.

Ultimately, as India is on the way to achieving a $5 trillion economy, we forget that in measuring our country’s developments, one cannot merely look at the heights of our skyscrapers if our holiest of places are not formalized, since the achievement of a "Viksit Bharat" will be measured in how well we are able to integrate our historic religiosity with our modernization.