Sambalpur: Odisha Chief Minister Naveen Patnaik Saturday inaugurated the redeveloped Samaleswari Temple in Sambalpur district, one of the most revered shrines in the western region of the state.
The 16th-century Samaleswari Temple on the banks of the Mahanadi has undergone transformation over 39 acres of its peripheral area under a Rs 200-crore project.
Amenities such as a boarding house for pilgrims, a park, a cafeteria, new Trust Board Office and a museum came up as part of the Samaleswari Temple Area Management and Local Economy Initiatives (SAMALEI) project.
The programme was held 10 days after the opening of the Heritage Corridor Project in the Jagannath Tempe in Puri, under several amenities were added to the 12th-century shrine.
Patnaik unveiled the SAMALEI project after offering prayers at Maa Samaleswari temple in the presence of dignitaries, temple priests and servitors.
The chief minister also joined the yagna performed on the occasion.
Programmes at the Jagannath temple January 17 and Samaleswari Temple Saturday were strategically timed with the Ram Mandir consecration ceremony in Ayodhya January 22.
The Odisha Bridge and Construction Corporation (OBCC), which implemented the Heritage Corridor Project in Puri, was also assigned the transformation of the SAMALEI project.
Patnaik in a video message to the people said that Odisha will always remember those who volunteered to forego their land for the SAMALEI project.
The Chief Minister also said that the SAMALEI project would help boost tourism and local economy in the western region.
He said the project could be completed with the blessings of Maa Samaleswari despite the obstacles created due to the COVID-19 pandemic. The work for the project started in February 2021.
Earlier Friday, hundreds of women participated in the Kalash Shobha Yatra. The water brought during the Yatra was used for the holy bath of the deity.
PTI