Unfazed by controversies over the vicinity development of the Jagannath Temple in Puri and the Lingaraj Temple in Bhubaneswar, the Naveen Patnaik government has continued to pump in massive funds for the facelift of Hindu religious places across Odisha, a move widely perceived as beating the BJP at its own game.
Mr. Patnaik inaugurated the newly developed Tara Tarini Temple on the bank of Rushikulya River in his home district of Ganjam on May 18, the fifth and concluding day of special pujas.
Redeveloped at an estimated expenditure of ₹115 crore, the ancient temple has been given several tourist amenities such as drinking water facility, restrooms, state-of-the-art lighting systems and new roads and ropeway.
