Lucknow: The Yogi Adityanath-led BJP government in Uttar Pradesh has now proposed a grand statue of Lord Ram on the banks of Saryu River in Ayodhya. Amid the ever-present Ram Janmabhoomi debate, the government is now planning the statue not far from the disputed Ram Janmabhoomi-Babri Masjid site.
Proposed as a part of its ‘Navya Ayodhya’ project to promote religious tourism in the state, the massive structure might cost hundreds of crores. This comes even as the UP tourism department gave the Taj Mahal a miss in its tourism booklet, ignoring the historic monument that is a huge revenue generator for the state, apart from being one of the ‘Seven Wonders of the World’.
Hours later, Uttar Pradesh Governor Ram Naik endorsed chief minister Yogi Adityanth's proposal to built a 100-metre tall Ram statue in the holy city.
The height of the statue has been proposed at 100 metres, while the measurements have not been finalized yet as the National Green Tribunal (NGT) is yet to give a no-objection certificate (NOC).
The proposal has been sent to Governor Ram Naik after a presentation by Tourism Principal Secretary, Awanish Awasthi. However, the state government is yet to ask for an NOC from the NGT.
According to highly placed sources, Awasthi went to invite Governor Naik for the grand Diwali celebrations at Ayodhya, on which Naik enquired if the measurements for the statue has been taken or not.
Awasthi then gave a presentation on the preparations for Diwali celebrations in Ayodhya, along with one on ‘Navya Ayodhya’, under which the grand Ram statue has been proposed.
Meanwhile, a Diwali aarti has been planned on the banks of Saryu. Thousands of diyas will be lit across Ayodhya and Chief Minister Yogi Adityanth, who is the head priest at the Gorakhnath temple in Gorakhpur, will lead a procession through the streets of Ayodhya, better known as Ram’s birthplace.
"Yes, there is a proposal for a Ram statue in Ayodhya. It is at a conceptual stage right now, there are many other proposals for different tourist destinations across Uttar Pradesh and it is one of them. If you go to Bali in Indonesia, you will find many such statues and our idea is to boost tourism in the state," said Principal Secretary (Tourism), Awasthi.
According to sources, apart from the statue, a Ram Katha gallery on the banks of the river, a multi-purpose auditorium in the Digambar Akhara premises and various other public utility services will also be part of the ‘Navya Ayodhya’ project.
For an integrated development of Ayodhya, the state government has sent a detailed project report (DPR) of Rs 195.89 crore to the Tourism Ministry at the Centre and the ministry has so far provided Rs 133.70 crore to the state.
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