Heritage Corridor near Jagannatha Temple: Assembly Speaker forms House Committee for inspection

Bhubaneswar: A day after legislators of the State Assembly raised concerns over the construction work being carried out near the Sri Jagannatha Temple in Puri, Speaker Surjya Narayan Patro formed a house committee to look into the heritage corridor project.

The eight-member house committee will be led by the Speaker. Its members are Narasingha Mishra, Debi Prasad Mishra, Jayant Sarangi, Lalitendu Bidyadhara Mohapatra, Pratap Jena, Bikram Keshari Arukh and Atanu Sabyasachi Nayak.

Yesterday, Puri MLA of BJP, Jayant Sarangi raised the issue of construction work near the Sri Jagannatha Temple and stated in the House that the National Monument Authority and Archaeological Survey of India have said that they have not given any approval for construction of a permanent structure near the temple.

Deep pits are being dug close to the temple, which may damage the structure of the temple, he said.

Requesting Speaker SN Patro to take the issue seriously, the MLA demanded formation of a House Committee consisting of members from all political parties, temple administration, servitors and architectural experts, to examine the construction activities.

Also, BJP chief whip Mohan Majhi demanded the Speaker to give ruling for formation of a House panel for this purpose.

Congress legislature party leader Narasingha Mishra too demanded the formation of a House Committee immediately so that the members can inspect the construction site and submit its report by the next session of the assembly.

BJP MP from Bhubaneswar, Aparajita Sarangi today raised the issue of the construction work in the Lok Sabha and drew attention of the Union Culture Minister.

Participating in the debate, BJD MP from Puri, Pinaki Mishra said no major construction activity is going on near the temple. Only, four toilets are being constructed by the State government for devotees, Mishra informed.