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Now, Ayodhya temple museum to come up on 52 acres of land
The Yogi Adityanath government’s approval comes a week after Prime Minister Narendra Modi declared the completion of the Ram Mandir in Ayodhya by hoisting the ‘Dharma Dhwaj’ (saffron flag) atop the temple on November 25.
The proposed temple museum in Ayodhya will now be much bigger. Against the earlier plan for a 25-acre complex, the Uttar Pradesh Cabinet, chaired by chief minister Yogi Adityanath, on Tuesday approved an additional 27.102 acres in Manjha Jamthara village of Ayodhya for the ₹750-crore mega project to be executed by Tata Sons Pvt Ltd.
The Yogi Adityanath government’s approval comes a week after Prime Minister Narendra Modi declared the completion of the Ram Mandir in Ayodhya by hoisting the ‘Dharma Dhwaj’ (saffron flag) atop the temple on November 25.
The proposed project, now spread across 52.102 acres, is set to be a world-class museum of temples, showcasing the history and architecture of famous temples across India. The housing and urban planning department will transfer the land to the tourism department pro bono, officials said.
It may be noted that the Ayodhya administration had given a presentation on the project before PM Narendra Modi in New Delhi in September 2023.
According to the state government, Tata Sons Pvt Ltd has expressed willingness to build and manage a world-class temple museum through its CSR funds, aimed at familiarising people with Indian temple architecture and the cultural and historical heritage associated with temples. Through this project, Tata Group also expressed its desire to preserve the spiritual and cultural traditions and philosophy of temples prevalent since ancient times.
To execute this project, a not-for-profit special purpose vehicle (SPV) will be formed under Section 8 of the Companies Act 2013. Representatives from the Union and state governments will also be part of this SPV, officials said.
For this mega project, a tripartite memorandum of understanding (MoU) was signed between the Union ministry of culture, UP tourism department, and Tata Sons Pvt Ltd on September 3, 2024.
Under the agreement, the state government will provide Tata Sons 25 acres of land in Manjha Jamthara village of Sadar tehsil, Ayodhya, for 90 years at the rate of ₹1 per year for constructing and operating the temple museum through CSR support from the Tata Group.
The state-of-the-art museum will showcase the history of the famous temples across the country. It will also virtually display the journey of the architecture of the temples across the country from the prehistoric age till date, officials said.
It will showcase the timeline and history of architecture of the temples across the country from pre-historic age till date. It will have architectural details of temples in the north, south, east and west.
Ayodhya is being developed as a world-class religious and spiritual tourism destination.
The number of tourists visiting Ayodhya has increased significantly after the ‘Pran Pratishtha’ ceremony on January 22, 2024.
Approximately 2-4 lakh tourists are visiting Ayodhya on a daily basis.
The temple museum will be constructed on 52.102 acres of land.
The land will be leased for 90 years at a rate of ₹1 per annum.
The project aims to promote Indian temple architecture, culture, and heritage.
The project will be implemented through a tripartite MoU signed between the Union ministry of culture, UP tourism department, and Tata Sons Pvt Ltd.
