Bhubaneswar: Odisha Chief Minister Naveen Patnaik Wednesday directed officials to resume the beautification work of heritage corridors around Puri’s Jagannath temple and Bhubaneswar’s Lingaraj temple from Friday.
Patnaik directed the officials regarding this through a video-conferencing meeting held today.
“We have had more than two months break due to the coronavirus where all work was stopped. Now we must hasten the work in both Puri and Bhubaneswar by day after tomorrow,” Chief Minister Naveen Patnaik said after a review of the two projects.
Patnaik also directed the officials to ensure social distancing and other safety measures as per the COVID-19 guidelines during the beautification work.
Chief Minister also informed that land acquisition for projects like Shree Setu, Jagannath Ballav Pilgrim Centre, Mahodadhi Market Complex and Municipal Market Complex was in progress and the process will take another 2-3 months.
Notably, work for the preservation of the heritage and grandeur of the Shri Jagannath Temple in Puri and Lingaraj Temple in Bhubaneswar was suspended amid the nationwide lockdown in wake of coronavirus outbreak.
According to sources, the architectural design for Sri Jagannath temple Heritage Corridor, redevelopment of Bada Danda, temple administration building and Shri Jagannath Culture Centre has been completed.
On the other hand, according to official sources, land acquisition for beautification of the Lingaraj Temple corridors and Bindu Sagar will be finished within a few more days.
For the beautification drive of holy water body Bindu Sagar, the state government will sign a MoU with the Indian Chemical Institute, Mumbai shortly to improve the water quality of the lake.
