Praying in comfort

More and more mosques in Bombay are reportedly providing air-conditioned prayer halls for the faithful to offer namaz in. Before the call for prayers the caretaker of the Al Medina mosque in Agripada closes the glass door and all the windows and then switches on over a dozen air-conditioners and many chandeliers, reported The Times of India (TOI) on August 18, 2014. This shuts out the street noise and permits the Imam to lead his congregation in prayer in the cool confines of the hall. After the session, which lasts about 15 minutes, the air-conditioners are turned off and fans cater to the latecomers who still linger at their devotions. "We aim to make namazis comfortable. Those who visit Allah’s house must feel good and happy,” TOI quotes Adil Ishaq Latif, a trustee of the mosque, as saying.
Four months ago air-conditioning was installed at the century old Haji Saboo Siddiq Musafirkhana’s mosque near Crawford Market, states TOI. A sum of nine lakhs was spent on air-conditioning the Noor Masjid at Jogeshwari and the massive Al Shams Juma Masjid in the distant suburb of Mira Road will soon follow suit. "Many people are used to air-conditioning as their homes, cars and offices are air-conditioned. So they should not feel uncomfortable in the mosques as well,” reasons Mahboob Doodhwala whose family has constructed the Fine Touch mosque in Agripada, as per the TOI report.