What TV doesn't, print can't; we deliver.
What TV doesn't, print can't; we deliver.
Festive atmosphere gripped Ujjain of Madhya Pradesh as local residents and politicians await patiently wait for Prime Minister Narendra Modi to inaugurate the ‘Mahakal Lok’ corridor on Tuesday.
Roads, chowks and important buildings have been decorated with saffron flags and large banners welcoming the prime minister in Ujjain.
More than 60,000 visitors are expected to join the inauguration event which will also be attended by chief minister Shivraj Singh Chouhan, as per government officials involved in the preparation.
Around 4,000 security personnel have been deployed for the ceremony and the program venue has also been declared a no-fly zone.
PM Modi will land at the Indore airport from Gujarat’s Ahmedabad and then fly to Ujjain in a helicopter. As per his schedule, the PM will unveil a grand ‘shivaling’, which has been placed below the grand gateway or Nandi Dwar of the ‘Mahakal Lok’, to symbolically mark the opening of the mega corridor.
The Mahakal corridor, built on the lines of the Kashi Vishwanath Corridor is spread around the Old Rudrasagar Lake in the Mahakal temple complex. The redevelopment of the heritage conservation project has been carried out at an estimated cost of Rs 800 crores.
The main attractions of the corridor include Mahakal Plaza, Mahakal Corridor, Mahakal Theme Park, a 200-meter-long walkway, the grand statue of Nandi, the Night Garden, and 108 pillars depicting Shiva in various poses.
With its grand opening, the corridor is expected to boost religious tourism in the city and surrounding areas. The main targeted site of tourism is the famous Mahakaleshwar Temple.
About one lakh devotees will watch the inauguration event live on LED screens put up at all ghats of the Shipra river in Ujjain. Apart from Mahakaleshwar, some other temples like Bandakpur temple in Damoh and Jatashankar temple in Chhatarpur are also holding special programmes to mark the event.
The design of the corridor is inspired by ‘Shiv Leela’. Around 100 murals and idols depicting stories related to Lord Shiva, such as Shiv Vivah, Tripurasur Vadh, Shiv Purana and Shiv Tandav Swaroop have been installed as per the redevelopment project. Each statue has a QR code that stores information about it.
The project is a part of the Smart City initiative. As many as 152 buildings were acquired by the government to connect Mahakal temple with the Kshipra river.
Under the project, the government has elaborate arrangements to stop the flow of dirty water into the Rudrasagar pond.
A second phase of the project is also planned.
