Uttar Pradesh cabinet okays TATA Sons’ proposal for ‘museum of temples’ in Ayodhya

Lucknow: The Uttar Pradesh cabinet approved a proposal from Tata Sons on Tuesday to build a ‘museum of temples’ in Ayodhya, with an estimated cost of ₹750 crore.

Sharing details about the decision, Tourism Minister Jaivir Singh said the tourism department would lease the company land for this international-level museum for 90 years, charging a token fee of Re 1.

“The union government has roped in Tata Sons to construct a museum in Ayodhya costing ₹650 crore. The company will manage the project using its corporate social responsibility (CSR) fund,” Jaiveer Singh informed the media after the cabinet meeting.

“The company will also undertake additional development projects in the temple town with an additional ₹100 crore,” he added.

The Ayodhya administration gave a presentation of the project before Prime Minister Narendra Modi in New Delhi in September 2023.

Chairman of the Ram Mandir Construction Committee, Nripendra Misra said that the construction of the entire Ram temple complex was expected to be completed by March 25 next year while the first floor of the temple would be completed by the end of next month, and thereafter, work would commence on the second floor.

CM Tourism Fellowship Programme

The CM Tourism Fellowship Programme, which aims to select researchers through the tourism department, also received approval from the cabinet. In the first phase, 25 researchers will be selected for this programme. Each researcher will receive an honorarium of ₹40,000, with ₹30,000 allocated for remuneration and ₹10,000 for field visits. Additionally, they will be provided with tablets. These researchers will promote tourism in the state and facilitate accelerated investment in this sector.

Helicopter services

Other proposals approved during the cabinet meeting included the launch of helicopter services in Lucknow, Prayagraj an Kapilvastu under the public-private partnership (PPP) model by building helipads.

To develop heritage buildings into tourist spots

The cabinet also cleared a proposal to develop dormant heritage buildings into tourist spots, the minister said. Three such heritage buildings- Kothi Roshan Dulha in Lucknow, Barsana Jal Mahal in Mathura and Shukla Talab (pond) in Kanpur -- were selected for development as tourist spots.

The Tourism department plans to lease closed or loss-incurring Tourist Bungalows in Munshiganj (Amethi), Khurja (Bulandshahr), Devi Sharif (Barabanki), and Hargaon (Sitapur) to operate them under the PPP mode. Additionally, other locations include Kachkla (Badaun), Etawah, Kapilvastu (Siddharth Nagar), Sikohabad (Firozabad), Vidhayachal (Mirzapur), Gopiganj (Bhadohi), and Jheel Mahal restaurant (Mau).

The birthplace of Paramhans Yoganand at Askarganj in Gorakhpur will also be developed as a tourist spot for which 460 sq metre land will be allotted to the tourism department.

Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita 2023

The state cabinet also approved a proposal to implement the Centre’s decision to repeal and replace the Indian Penal Code with the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita 2023 as the new penal code of the country. Alongside this new Act, the Bharatita Nagarik Suraksha Sanhita 2023 and Bharatiya Sakshya Adhiniyam 2023 will also be implemented.