Hindu temple wins 'Pride of Place' award

The BAPS Shri Swaminarayan Mandir in London wins the "UK Pride of Place" award in an online poll.

The BAPS Shri Swaminarayan Mandir in Neasden area in London, which attracts visitors from all over the world, has won the "UK Pride of Place" award in an online poll, the results of which were declared on Wednesday.

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The temple, the first traditional Hindu Mandir constructed in Europe, not only took the most votes in London, but came out on top in the national poll, with 2,344 people going online to register their pride.

The Pride of Place poll is part of the British government's 'Connect to your Council' campaign, which aims to encourage citizens to access their local authority services online -- anytime, anywhere.

In the London vote, Firepower, the visitor attraction at the Royal Artillery Museum in Greenwich, and the Horniman Museum at Forest Hill in Lewisham, came second and third respectively behind the temple in Neasden in the borough of Brent.

A spokesman for the Board of Trustees of the Mandir said today: "We are delighted that the Bochsanawasi Aksar Purushottam Shri Swaminarayan Mandir has won the UK Pride of Place Award."

Nine local authorities across London took part in the Pride of Place poll by inviting visitors to click and vote for one of ten locally nominated top spots on their websites.

In all, 36,800 people went online to vote for their favourite place in this first national council-led poll.