Some 40 mosques across the country will be refurbished with expensive Turkish carpets at a cost of QR2m ahead of the holy month of fasting as part of interior décor facelift of the places of worship.
There are an estimated 1,200 mosques in Qatar. A senior Ministry of Endowments and Islamic Affairs official said that imams (priests) and their assistants who give the call for prayers will be held responsible if mosques are not found clean.
“They have to come to us and report their requirements. We will immediately provide the necessary backup in the case there is problem with cleanliness in a mosque,” Saad Umran Al Kuwari, from the ministry’s mosque service, said.
About the refurbishment of the 40 mosques, he said Turkish carpets are known for not absorbing dust and have long life. “Some 9,000 square meters of this special carpet is being bought at a cost of QR2m.”
Most of the beneficiary mosques are near busy marketplaces so more people frequent them, he said. According to him, plans are also afoot to install equipment for ‘ood’-laced charcoal fire in every mosque. Odd is an expensive perfume.
Mosques where Eid prayers are held will get their own expensive carpets, some 6,044 pieces of which have already been bought.
Al Kuwari said that so far carpets were being taken on rent from private companies during the two Eids. “We will have our own carpets now.”
http://thepeninsulaqatar.com/Display_news.asp?section=Local_News&subsection=Qatar+News&month=June2009&file=Local_News200906271367.xml
Follow us on our social media channels:
@ILQlive
@ILQlive
@ILoveQtr
ILoveQatar
