Silver hits Rs 1.5 lakh/kg for first time; gold surges Rs 1,500 to record Rs 1,19,500/10g
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New Delhi (PTI): Silver prices on Monday soared by Rs 7,000 to hit an all-time high of Rs 1.5 lakh per kilogram in the national capital, while gold also scaled a new peak of Rs 1,19,500 per 10 grams amid strong global trends, according to the All India Sarafa Association.
The precious metal of 99.9 per cent purity jumped Rs 1,500 to reach a lifetime high of Rs 1,19,500 per 10 grams (inclusive of all taxes), up from Rs 1,18,000 per 10 grams in the previous session.
In the local bullion market, gold of 99.5 per cent purity also rallied by Rs 1,500 to hit a record high of Rs 1,18,900 per 10 grams from Rs 1,17,400 per 10 grams on Saturday.
Silver prices, too, witnessed a sharp rally, climbing Rs 7,000 to touch a record Rs 1,50,000 per kilogram (inclusive of all taxes), extending gains for the fourth straight session. The white metal had ended at Rs 1,43,000 per kg in the previous trade.
In the overseas market, both gold and silver posted robust gains. Spot gold surged nearly 2 per cent to hit an all-time high of USD 3,824.61 per ounce, while silver advanced more than 2 per cent to USD 47.18 per ounce.
According to analysts, the surge in bullion prices was driven by strong global demand and a weakening dollar as investors sought refuge in safe-haven assets amid continued geopolitical and economic uncertainty.
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SC to hear pleas for reviewing wages of priests, temple staff
New Delhi (PTI): The Supreme Court is scheduled to hear on Monday a plea to constitute a judicial commission or an expert committee to review the wages and other benefits given to priests, 'sevadars' and temple staff in state-controlled temples.
A bench of Justices Vikram Nath and Sandeep Mehta is likely to hear the PIL filed by advocate Ashwini Upadhyay.
The plea, filed through advocate Ashwani Dubey, seeks directions to the Centre and states to constitute a judicial commission or an expert committee to review the remuneration and other benefits given to the priests and temple staff in state-controlled temples.
"Petitioner also seeks a declaration that priests and temple staff are employee' under Section 2(k) of the Code on Wages, 2019. Petitioner submits that once the State assumes the administrative, economic and financial control over temples, an employer-employee relationship arises and denial of dignified wages to priests and temple staff violates the right to livelihood guaranteed under Article 21," it said.
Upadhyay said the cause of action accrued on April 4, when he went to Varanasi to attend a public programme and after performing 'Rudrabhishek' in the Kashi Vishwanath temple, which is controlled by the state, he came to know that even the minimum wages to live with dignity are not given to the priests and temple staff.
"Recently, in Andhra Pradesh and Telangana, priests and temple staff organised a large-scale protest demanding the minimum wages. Priests and temple staff are not getting even the minimum wage prescribed by the State for unskilled and semi-skilled workers. This is a systemic exploitation. State is acting as a model employer through the endowments department, but violating the minimum wages Act and the directive principles of state policy (Article 43)," it said.
The plea further said the continued refusal to meet the minimum wages with the 2026 inflation-adjusted cost of living index has forced the petitioner to seek judicial intervention to prevent the further marginalisation of priests and temple staff.
Upadhyay further said the precarious nature of livelihood was starkly exposed on February 7, 2025, when a Tamil Nadu department issued a circular at the 'Dandayuthapani Swami Temple' in Madurai, strictly prohibiting priests from accepting 'dakshina' in 'aarti plates'.
"It is necessary to state that priests in such temples often receive no formal salary from the State and rely entirely on 'Dakshina'; the State's administrative order directly threatened them with starvation. Although withdrawn due to public outrage, the incident highlights the State's arbitrary power over the survival of the priests. This is also a bitter truth that States are controlling lakhs of temples but not a single mosque or church," the PIL claimed.
The petition, alternatively, sought direction to the Centre and states to take appropriate steps for the welfare of priests, sevadars and other temple staff in the spirit of the Allahabad High Court's earlier judgments.
