While the Hindi heartland of the country will be reverberating in the festivities surrounding the inauguration of Ram Temple at Ayodhya in January 2024, the eastern part will see similar ceremonies around the same time with the unveiling of the ambitious Shree Mandira Parikrama Project (SMPP), a massive periphery redevelopment of the famous Jagannath Temple in Puri.
A day after Dibyasingha Deb, Chairman of Shree Jagannath Temple Managing Committee and titular king of Puri, said the project was likely to be inaugurated on January 17, 5T Chairman V. K. Pandian on Saturday directed the executing agencies to ensure completion of the project by December 15. The inaugural ceremonies may be spread over five days during the third week of January.
The SMPP project relates to redevelopment of 75-metre area abutting Meghanada Pacheri – the boundary wall of the project. Taken up at a cost of ₹1,000 crore, the project includes a seven-metre green buffer zone, 10-metre Antar (inner) Pradakshina - pedestrian-only path for round the year. It will be used by the general public for parikrama (clockwise circumambulation) of the temple. The eight-metre outer circumambulation path would be covered by trees on either side. There will be a 10-metre public convenience zone.
