Odisha govt plans to beautify UNESCO heritage Konark Temple, finalises draft
The Odisha government has decided to take up a heritage project for beautification of the Konark Sun Temple, which is a UNESCO world heritage site.
- India News
- 2 min read
The Odisha government on Thursday announced that it will take up a heritage project for beautification of the Konark Sun Temple, which was declared a world heritage site by the United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organisation (UNESCO) in 1984. The said project will focus on attracting more tourists and ensure the temple's conservation. It will include the construction of a six-lane outer ring road and the development of all roads leading to the temple. Odisha Chief Minister Naveen Patnaik held a meeting with senior government officials and discussed modalities of the "Konark Heritage Area Development" plan.
State Govt govt finalises draft plan
"A draft plan to upgrade the temple's infrastructure facilities to international standards has been prepared. Patnaik has directed the district administration to ensure that the UNESCO heritage site is surrounded by world-class infrastructure," a government officials said. A Konark entry plaza will be constructed to welcome the tourists and landscaping of about 30 acres of land in front of the temple will be worked out. The Konark open air theatre would also be renovated, and a special stretch would be built for pedestrians. Apart from this, the other ongoing projects include the heritage corridor projects encompassing Sri Jagannath temple at Puri and Lingaraj temple in Bhubaneswar.
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The official added, "Under the proposed project, the 3.5 km-long corridor around the 13th century Sun Temple at Konark will be turned into a six-lane road. All roads in the state leading to the temple will be developed, while dedicated points with transport facilities will be set up between Bhubaneswar and Konark for the convenience of visitors."
Meanwhile, after receiving a positive response during last year's 'Eco Retreat', a glamping festival, the Odisha government had organised the second edition of the festival. In comparison to last year, this year Odisha had added 5 more destinations to highlight the diversity in tourism and hospitality in the state.