PM Modi to lay foundation stone of Rs 1,000-crore temple complex

Prime Minister Narendra Modi is scheduled to lay the foundation stone for a mega temple complex, coming up on the city's outskirts at a cost of Rs 1,000 crore, on March 4, organisers said on Friday, March 1.

Over five lakh people are expected to attend the grand foundation stone laying ceremony of the complex - Vishv Umiya Dham - they said. The temple will be dedicated to Maa Umiya, the reigning deity of 'Kadva Patels', a sub-group of the Patidar community.

Besides a grand temple, the complex will house a skill university, hostels for boys and girls, a job placement and counselling centre for students, a counselling cell for issues related to agriculture and immigration and a centre to resolve social and commercial disputes among community members.

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The entire complex, situated near SG Highway on the city's outskirts, will be spread across 30 lakh square feet, said R P Patel, a trustee of the Vishv Umiya Foundation.

"Our aim is to make this complex a social empowerment hub for our community. "Among other facilities, it will also have a sports and health complex, an NRI Bhavan, employment training centre, a healthcare unit, apartments for the elderly citizens.

"We will also provide guidance to farmers, students and businessmen from here," Patel told reporters at the venue.

"Prime Minister Narendra Modi will lay the foundation stone for this project on March 4. We have already distributed invitation cards to 5 lakh people, including those living outside India. "We expect the number of attendees to be far more than five lakhs," claimed Patel.

He said the entire project would be completed in the next 10 years.

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"The estimated cost of the entire project is around Rs 1,000 crore. Till now, we have received donations of Rs 360 crore. "The temple and skill university building will be ready in the next 4 to 5 years. It will take another five years to construct the remaining structures," Patel said.

On Thursday, February 28, state government officials had announced Modi will be on a two-day visit to Gujarat from March 4. During the visit to his home state, the PM would inaugurate various development projects and also lay the foundation of the temple complex, they had said.