Amid Ram Mandir Inauguration, Naveen Patnaik's Jagannath Heritage Push In Odisha

(MENAFN- Live Mint) "Only five days before the Ayodhya Ram Temple inauguration, Odisha Chief Minister Naveen Patnaik is set to unveil the Jagannath Heritage Corridor Project on January 17. In a video shared by the state's Chief Minister's Office, Naveen Patnaik appealed to the people to light diyas, blow conch shells, offer prayers and perform kirtan on the day of the inauguration Temple is one of the four dhammas that every Hindu is advised to visit. Mahaprabhu Shri Jagannath, along with sister Devi Subhadra and elder brother Mahaprabhu Shri Balabhadra, are worshipped in Puri (the Purusottama Kshetra).Jagannath Heritage Corridor Project is 'unique': 5 Key Facts1. 'Shree Mandir Parikrama' - also called Jagannath Heritage Corridor Project - of Lord Jagannath temple in Odisha's Puri will be inaugurated by Naveen Patnaik on Wednesday. The project was completed by the Odisha Bridge and Construction Corporation (OBCC) and handed over to the temple administration Sri Jagannath Temple Administration (SJTA).\"...on the 15th, 16th and 17th January, there is going to be the 'Pratishtha Yagya' and the 'Lokarpana' of the entire project...On the 17th, CM will unveil the plaque of the project and the 'Purnahuti' will take place,\" said erstwhile king of Puri, Gajapati Maharaj Dibyasingha Deb Jagannath Temple Administration (SJTA) chief administrator Ranjan Kumar Das told PTI a large number of dignitaries, including ministers, political leaders and 'sants' are likely to attend the event. The Shree Jagannath Temple Administration (SJTA) has invited representatives from 90 religious shrines and institutions across the country to attend the mega function on January 17 READ: Covid-19, Puri heritage corridor, US energy crisis and more2. Patnaik said the project aims at facilitating the common people to undertake the 'Parikrama' in a smooth and secured way.3. BJD MP Amar Patnaik called the project unique and said \"the pilgrims will now get a kind of spiritual experience, which they have not experienced before\". He said,“And this would also give them an opportunity to spend more time meditating or connecting with the lord, and that is the main purpose of this project...”4. As a part of the ₹800-crore project, 800 metres around the 12th-century Jagannath temple has been redeveloped, news agency PTI reported. No changes have been made in the temple project includes parking places, Shree Setu (a bridge), pilgrimage centres, a new road to facilitate the movement of pilgrims, toilets, clock rooms, electrical works and other visitors' amenities, news agency ANI reported. Sri Setu (bridge), Shri Jagannath Ballav Parking, Shri Marg (road) and other projects are almost ready, an official told PTI READ: Who is VK Pandian, the IAS officer whose retirement led to a place in Odisha CM Naveen Patnaik's Cabinet?5. The ₹800-crore project will ensure expansive, unobstructed corridors around the Meghanada Pacheri (outer wall) of the Jagannath temple and will provide the devotees excellent visual connection with the 12th-century shrine. The project is one component of a massive initiative worth over ₹4,000 crore to transform Puri into a world heritage city, another official said.
What the project may mean for Patnaik and BJP?The Odisha Legislative Assembly election are due in 2024. The NDTV reported that this could be Naveen Patnaik and his party Biju Janata Dal's (BJD) \"strategic move\" to boost religious sentiments and also defeat the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) in the state BJD is eying a sixth consecutive term in Odisha. In the 2019 Odisha Assembly elections, the BJD had lost eight of the 21 Lok Sabha seats to the BJP with Ram Mandir inauguration?Naveen Patnaik's appeal to light diyas on corridor's inauguration seemed to be in line with Prime Minister Narendra Modi's call for lighting diyas at home on the day of \"Pran Pratishtha\" ceremony at Ayodhya's Ram temple on January 22, a paper pouch containing the 'akshat' (rice grains mixed with turmeric and ghee), an image of the Ram temple and a pamphlet describing details of the structure were being distributed to the people ahead of Ram Temple ceremony READ: Odisha: Puri's Jagannath Temple bans 'paan', 'gutka', other tobacco products on premisesIn a similar campaign, fleet of 8,000 specially designed vehicles were seen traversing every nook and corner of the state, reports said. The Odisha government said they will collect betel nut and a handful of rice from all households across the state for the inauguration ceremony of the Shree Jagannath Heritage Corridor Project in Puri on January 17 the Opposition's reaction to the Jagannath Heritage Corridor Project and Ayodhya Ram Temple projects seemed similar. The Opposition in the country deemed the Centre's move to inaugurate Ram Mandir in Ayodhya as a political strategy to gain in the upcoming Lok Sabha polls. In the same way, leaders of the opposition Congress and the BJP in Odisha called the inauguration of
Jagannath Heritage Corridor a \"political event\", PTI reported.\"As the BJP is using the Ram temple in Ayodhya for political gains, the BJD here is using the heritage corridor project for electoral gains. The government is using the public exchequer to further the ruling BJD's electoral prospects,\" Congress legislative party leader Narasingha Mishra was quoted by PTI as saying claimed that like the Ram Temple in Ayodhya, the heritage corridor project in Puri is yet to be completeCongress leader Bijay Patnaik had reportedly slammed the Odisha government over the Puri Srimandir Parikrama Project. Also, state BJP president Manmohan Samal was quoted by Times of India as saying that the inauguration of the heritage corridor project has been turned into a purely BJD event, BJP leader Amar Prasad Satpathy said that redevelopment was carried to improve amenities around the Janannath temple.

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