Puri: The renovation work at Swargadwar cremation ground in the Holy City here is going on at full pace.
The state government and the district administration have taken adequate steps to provide modern facilities at Swargadwar without harming its mythological importance, sources said.
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The district administration had earlier consulted Puri Shankaracharya Nischalananda Saraswati for Swargadwar renovation work.
“A Hyderabad-based firm had developed a blueprint for renovation of the cremation ground. The renovation work is being carried out under the guidance of Puri Shankaracharya. Collector Balwant Singh is personally inspecting the work,” said an official of the district administration.
Many people across the state usually prefer to perform the last rites of their near and dear ones at Swargadwar cremation ground.
‘Swarga’ means heaven and ‘Dwar’ means gateway. So, it is believed that Swargadwar cremation ground is the gateway to heaven. As per the belief, the soul finds the ultimate salvation if the body is cremated at Swargadwar, which has close link with the Jagannath culture.
However, poor facilities at Swargadwar often cause inconvenience to the bereaved people who opt to consign the bodies to flames at the seaside cremation ground.
Taking the issue seriously, the state government had last year sanctioned Rs 5 crore to develop infrastructure at Swargadwar. It had also decided to develop the cremation ground in line with Mahaprasthanam crematorium in Hyderabad.
Besides, Chief Minister Naveen Patnaik had announced the demolition of the ‘Biju Samadhi’ (the memorial of his father Biju Patnaik) to pave way for the renovation of Swargadwar.
At present, the administration is constructing 14 elevated platforms for cremation of bodies and also renovating a Shiva temple near Swargadwar. Besides, it has built six elevated platforms for safe keeping of bodies before their cremation.
In addition to that, steps have been taken to provide drinking water, toilet and resting facilities to the bereaved people. “Metal barricades have been raised around the cremation ground and eight CCTVs have been installed to enhance security. The entire ground has been illuminated properly. A 24-member team is supervising the modernisation work at Swargadwar,” said the official.
Sub-collector Bhabataran Sahu said the administration has opened a dedicated centre at Swargadwar to help bereaved people. “We have planned to introduce a single window system to provide all facilities to the people who want to cremate bodies at the seashore cremation ground. We will fix the prices for each service and display a chart for people’s notice,” added the sub-collector.
Many social activists and intellectuals, meanwhile, have urged the district administration to remove encroachments from Swargadwar. They claimed that the cremation ground originally spread over 16 acre land. However, the area of Swargadwar has been reduced to only 46 decimal due to large scale encroachments over the years.
“The administration should remove all encroachments from Swargadwar and carry out the renovation work,” said voluntary outfit Sachetan Nagarik Manch president Prasanna Kumar Dash.
PNN
