CM Yogi lays foundation stone for Kailash Mansarovar pilgrim centre in Ghaziabad

The facility was proposed to come up in Arthala but ran into rough weather as environmentalists filed complaints with the district administration that one of the land chunks was registered as ‘jheel’ (a water body) and contended that the nature of the land cannot be changed as per norms and the directions of the Supreme Court.

Following controversy over the site for ‘Kailash Mansarovar Yatra Bhawan’, which will now come up in Indirapuram, chief minister Yogi Adityanath on Thursday laid the foundation stone for the facility.

The facility was proposed to come up in Arthala but ran into rough weather as environmentalists filed complaints with the district administration that one of the land chunks was registered as ‘jheel’. (Sakib Ali/HT Photo)

The facility was proposed to come up in Arthala but ran into rough weather as environmentalists filed complaints with the district administration that one of the land chunks was registered as ‘jheel’ (a water body) and contended that the nature of the land cannot be changed as per norms and the directions of the Supreme Court.

The municipal body had claimed that the land was ‘banjar’ (barren) in its property records. Hindustan Times carried reports on complaints by environmentalists, following which officials took cognizance before acting swiftly to change the site from Arthala to Indirapuram. The facility was earlier proposed at Arthala near the ‘Ala Hazrat Haj House’ – a facility for Haj pilgrims — inaugurated last year by former CM Akhilesh Yadav.

“I would like to congratulate everyone on the launch of the much-awaited project. I know how you felt when the facility was not made available. Many people tried to hinder setting up of the facility here but MPs and MLAs repeatedly approached me to set up the facility in Ghaziabad, near Delhi. We agreed and sanctioned funds for the same. It is our endeavour to make Kailash Mansarovar centre a prominent place in Ghaziabad and a major tourist centre in the state,” CM Yogi said.

The CM laid the foundation stone for the facility at a function on Kavi Nagar Ramlila Ground on Thursday.

“There was yet again an attempt to create controversy and an attempt to disrupt the facility from being set up, but we immediately purchased Rs50 crore land and finally were able to allot the facility to people in the same assembly segment, Ghaziabad. The facility signifies that UP has huge potential for tourism, which we will use to generate employment opportunities,” he said.

He said that the facility will be used by pilgrims heading to Kailash Mansarovar and also those undertaking Sindhu Yatra and Kanwar Yatra. He said that three other facilities — Shukratal (Muzaffarnagar), Shakumbhari Devi (Saharanpur) and Garhmukteshwar (Hapur) — will also be actively developed to attract tourists.

“We are working on the same lines to develop our cities on PM Narendra Modi’s vision to propose different circuits such as Ramayana circuit, Buddha circuit and Krishna circuit. The UP government is working on the same lines of governance like the Central government. Kailash Mansarovar facility will connect you to ‘Rishi Parampara’, which spans from the Himalayas to Kanyakumari,” CM Yogi said.

As a result of the last minute change of site, the UP government will bear an additional cost of nearly Rs50.4 crore for ‘Kailash Mansarovar’ centre as it has to purchase the land from Ghaziabad Development Authority. The facility will be constructed at Indirapuram and is expected to accommodate around 280 pilgrims. Officials said it will be completed within two years at a cost of Rs42.9 crore. The UP government has already sanctioned Rs20 crore for the project.