Major installations, including the Integrated Test Range at Chandipur in Balasore district and other defence sites across the state, are under tight security.
BJP govt in Odisha criticised WB for naming Digha shrine as Jagannath Dham. Puri's Shree Jagannath Temple Administration also questioned servitor who participated in Digha consecration.
The Cholas built massive temples dedicated to Shiva in Tamil Nadu, inspiring other kingdoms. But because they were too expensive to maintain, the Ganga dynasty in Odisha chose to patronise an existing local deity — Jagannath in Puri.
Shree Mandir Parikrama Prakalpa, a 75-metre-wide corridor, was inaugurated by Odisha CM Naveen Patnaik on 17 January. It includes multi-level car parking, welcome space that can hold 6,000.
A host of temples is being renovated at a cost of Rs 2,000 crore. PWD says it’s a development & tourism-related project, but some experts see political undertones.
75-metre Parikrama Corridor will give pilgrims better access, cluttered periphery is being cleared by acquiring land. All this is part of push for World Heritage Site tag.
RJD, once a prominent representative of Mandal politics, now finds itself in a political era where welfare, good governance, and new aspirations are overshadowing old caste equations.
Without a Congress revival, there can be no challenge to the BJP pan-nationally. Modi’s party is growing, and almost entirely at the cost of the Congress.
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