Dhenkanal: Odisha Chief Minister Naveen Patnaik Friday laid the foundation stone for transformation and beautification of Joranda Mahima Pitha in Dhenkanal district.
Patnaik, who visited the sacred seat of the Mahima sect of Hinduism, established by Mahima Gosain in the early 19th century, said: “Odisha is the land of God. The ‘peeth’ has given Odisha a special place on the spiritual map of India.”
The state government has sanctioned Rs 112 crore for the development of ‘Mahima Peeth’, Patnaik said.
Apart from a meditation centre and a ‘Bati Mandap’ (lamp house), beautification activities will also be carried out, he said.
The followers of the ‘Mahima’ sect are mostly spread across Odisha and in some parts of Assam, Madhya Pradesh, Maharashtra, Andhra Pradesh, Telangana, Jharkhand, Chhattisgarh and West Bengal.
There are around 5 lakh ‘Mahima’ sect followers in the Dhenkanal Lok Sabha constituency, officials said.
PTI
