Sunday 9 May 2010

Tara Tarini Board to recover land donated to hill shrine

The aim is to prevent some 600 acres from being encroached upon
BERHAMPUR: The Tara Tarini Development Board (TTDB) has decided to recover all the landed property donated to the hill shrine.
The TTDB authorities have approached the State Law and Revenue Departments for the purpose, said Secretary of the TTDB Pramod Kumar Panda. “We are now going through the past records of the temple to ascertain where the land patches donated to the hill shrine are located,” he said. It is anticipated that the hill shrine may have got more than 600 acres of land donated to it in different parts of the State. Half of it is located in Ganjam district. It was found that the hill-shrine was not getting any income or part of harvest from these land patches. The TTDB wants to recover the land before miscreants encroach upon it.
Tourism plan
This decision was taken at a recent high-level meeting organised in Bhubaneswar to discuss the future development of the hill shrine into a major tourist destination of the State. This meeting was chaired by State Law Minister B.K.Arukh and it was attended by State Tourism Minister Debi Prasad Mishra, senior officials and TTDB authorities.
The State Tourism department has decided to help in the development of the hill-shrine and in the first phase it would sanction Rs 71 lakhs for the purpose. A high-level team of the department is expected to visit the shrine regarding it. The TTDB wants to increase the infrastructure at this hill shrine as the visitors to it are on the rise. On Tuesday in the month of Chaitra more than 20 lakh visitors reached the hill shrine.
Efforts are also on to protect hill from landslide. Outer protection walls would be constructed on the north and south sides of the hill. Retaining wall would be constructed on the river side to check landslide and soil erosion from the hill top. This work would be initiated at cost of Rs 1 crore by the rural development department of the state government.
The work on the new temple complex at the hill top would be completed by January 2011. Dedicated bus service to the hill shrine and construction of a new bus stand at the foot hill would be started soon.
The existing ghat road from Keshpur to the hill top would be widened at a cost of some Rs 5 crores, the TTDB authorities said.
Tara Tarini shrine to be religious tourist destination
Pioneer News Service, Berhampur: The famous shakti sthala Tara Tarini here will emerge as a major religious tourist destination soon.
The State Government has unveiled plans for the development of the hill shrine at a recently held high-level meeting attended by the State Law Minister, Tourism Minister apart from a host of senior officials and the Tara Tarini Development Board (TTDB) officials.
Ever since the renovation of the ancient temple began in 2003 by the TTDB, the flow of visitors to the shrine has grown manifold. However, the peripheral development, construction of rope way and facilities for the visitors have been made through the support and contributions of the people.
But, realising its tourism potential and taking into account the ever increasing number of visitors to the shrine, the State Government has come forward to develop it as a major religious tourist destination and speed up the peripheral development work besides restoring land in excess of 200 acres belonging to the shrine. 
The State is also planning for the construction of guard walls on the hilltop to check soil erosion. Further, the State Tourism Department has agreed to spend Rs 71 lakh in the first phase to boost its tourism potential.