Making Puri A World-Class Heritage City Needs Practical Action

Puri: Odisha Government is determined to transform the holy city of Puri into a world class heritage city. In order to bring in this transformation, a number of initiatives are being taken which are necessary. As part of the process, the district administration has started an eviction process around the outer compound wall of the Jagannath temple which is also known as the Meghanada Prachira.

This comes after the State Government accepted the recommendations made by Justice BP Das Commission of Inquiry that was set up to look into the reforms and security of Puri Srimandir.

The eviction also assumes importance as there have been instances of intelligence reports of threat to the temple from terrorists. The clearing of the area will help provide been better security.

The Archeological Survey of India had also opined that the peripheral areas of the temple need to be cleared for better management of the temple. This step will also lead to decongesting the temple periphery and bring in more amenities for the pilgrims. The process has just started and amid tight security the administration has pulled down some government structures near the Dakhsina Dwara. While the offices will be relocated to other places, private parties will be given adequate compensation.

The development measures of the government have been welcomed by many people. While the ideologues have welcomed the move to clear the area of structures, pilgrims and tourists have also given thumbs up. According to Biswajeet Chaterjee, a tourist from Medinapur, “I have come to Puri many times. But this time I can see a real change in the temple management. There is more space and the Darshan has been good. I have visited many places in India like Tirupati, Shiridi and the Golden Temple. But Puri was lacking the atmosphere earlier. Now that the government started initiatives, it will be better for us.”

This time the government is taking a proactive step swiftly. Just within three days of the cabinet decision to accept the Justice BP Das Commission recommendations, the district administration swung into action. This shows how concerned is the state government on the issue. This is also seen as a part of the Government’s 5-T initiative to bring in transformation in a time bound manner. The newly appointed 5-T Secretary V. K Pandian has been directly looking into the development of Puri as it is the most important directive of the Chief Minister Naveen Patnaik. V. K Pandian himself is an ardent devotee of Lord Jagannath and visits Puri every week without failing. Puri has a universal appeal and lakhs of Hindus from all over the world come here to have darshan of Lord Jagannath. During Rath Yatra the temple city welcomes millions of people and for this there is a need for world class amenities. These efforts are being undertaken in that direction.

The government’s determination to transform the oldest pilgrim town can be judged from the fact that recently it approved a mega package for infrastructure development worth Rs 265 Crore. The package includes development of two multi-level parking systems near old jail and Jatrika which would accommodate 400 cars each. There is also a proposal to construct 1,250 shops near old jail, Jatrika and Municipality market areas. The infrastructural development projects will be done under the ‘ABADHA’ scheme. Also, all the Government offices including the Puri Collector’s office will be housed in a single complex called the Lok Seva Bhavan.

Earlier the Puri Jagannath Temple Administration had also taken some initiatives to bring in more change in the day to management of the temple. It implemented the ban on Dana to sevayatas inside the temple by the pilgrims after the Supreme Court order. Also, recently, the SJTA banned eating of paan and tobacco by servitors inside the temple.

The decision of the District administration along with the SJTA to hold street festival on the Bada Danda has been widely appreciated by the people of Puri and the pilgrims coming to have darshan of the deities. This enhanced the spiritual atmosphere of the temple.

All these efforts are directed at transforming the temple city into a world class heritage city. These will definitely help in increasing the footfalls of tourists and add to the growth of the local economy.

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