Ramdev: An eye on comfort

Ranchi, Jan. 4: Baba Ramdev?s lexicon seems to have a gaping divide between what he preaches and what he practises.

While his teachings are hinged on the themes of simplicity and austerity, the bearded yogi himself hardly settles for anything less than being accorded a state guest status if he has to venture out of his home territory in Hardwar.

And that?s not it. The baba, who is in the eye of a storm after CPM MP Brinda Karat spewed venom at him over the alleged presence of animal and human bones in his ayurvedic medicines, also holds out a long list of dos and don?ts for those attending his camps. The baba?s associates send in a list of guidelines to the organisers before the yogi himself lands up for his camps, ostensibly to ensure his security.

And those having to weather his tantrums to organise the camps in Ranchi are certainly not pleased about it.

Quoting the guidelines issued by the Patanjali Yogpeeth Trust, which runs under the aegis of Baba Ramdev, an organiser informed The Telegraph that the baba seems quite finicky about his personal comforts.

?While the camp has to be organised in an open field of at least three lakh sq ft with two sound proof generators of 62 KV capacity each, the organisers have to make lodging arrangements for the baba at least 2-5 km away from the camp. Besides, the yogi needs at least four rooms, a conference hall and a small kitchen, where he will stay and meet VVIPs from 3 to 5 pm. Additionally, the organisers have to erect at least 100 hoardings, 400-800 banners and publish about 1-2 lakh pamphlets and issue newspaper adverts,? the organiser said. The circulation materials have to be prepared on the direction of the trust besides making seating arrangements for baba?s vaidyas (ayurveda practitioners) within 500 metres of the camp, he added.

While the slur on baba?s medicines might provide a setback to chief minister Arjun Munda?s plans of tapping herbal resources of the state with his help, his devotees still have the unflinching faith in him. It was an effort to malign their much-revered guru, many of them felt.