Bhubaneswar: The state government is planning to collect donation from corporate bodies, organisations and individuals for the much talked about Shree Jagannath Heritage Corridor project.
The decision was taken at a meeting held recently under the chairmanship of Works secretary Krishnan Kumar recently.
The Works department has formed a technical committee to explore options for financing and execution of the project. Managing director of Odisha Building and Construction Corporation Ltd (OBCC) will be chairman of the committee while chief engineer (design), chief engineer (roads) and Works department additional secretary are the other members of the panel.
It is also possible that many people and organisations may give donations for the project. Therefore, the government has formed the panel to prepare a mechanism to take care of such possibilities in the contractual framework, a senior official of the Works department told Orissa POST, Friday.
Issues like who will accept the materials, how will it be used in the project by the selected contractor, valuation and deduction for same will be addressed in the document, he said.
Asked whether the government has faced fund crunch for the project in view of Covid-19, the official said, “No there is no shortage of fund. As many people and organisations have come forward to donate for the historic project, we are preparing modalities to receive such donations.”
Chief Minister Naveen Patnaik had unveiled the draft plan for the project in December 2019. A major portion of the land for several structures, including a pilgrim centre, market complex and a bridge in Puri, has already been acquired. The land acquisition process for the whole project is likely to be completed in two-three months, sources said.
Similarly, designs for the Shree Jagannath Heritage Corridor, Grand Road development, renovation of Shree Jagannath Temple Administration office building and Jagannath Culture Centre are being readied.
The state government has earmarked Rs 3,208 crore under the Augmentation of Basic Amenities and Development of Heritage and Architecture (ABADHA) scheme in three years to transform Puri into a world heritage city.