Puri Heritage Corridor Project

The Puri Heritage Corridor Project, which was conceived in the year of 2016, was announced in December 2019 with the goal of transforming the holy city of Puri into an international heritage site. For tourists and visitors, the project entails redeveloping key areas of the sacred town and the area surrounding the temple. The architecture and design plan for the project, which is anticipated to cost around Rs. 3,200 crores, was accepted by the Shree Jagannath Temple Administration (SJTA).

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About the Project

• In total, 22 separate projects will be implemented in different stages.
• Post the Odisha state government’s Augmentation of Basic Amenities and Development of Heritage and Architecture at Puri (ABADHA) plan granted the initial financing of Rs 800 crore, the first phase would contribute additional Rs 265 crore.
• The Shree Jagannath Temple Administration (SJTA) will be building the following following structures under the proposed project:
  • a 600 capacity Srimandir reception centre
  • the Jagannath cultural centre
  • Raghunandan library
  • an integrated command and control centre
  • the Badadanda heritage streetscape
  • Srimandir amenities
  • Sri Setu
  • Jagannath Ballav pilgrim centre
  • multilevel car parking
  • municipal market development
  • Swargadwar development
  • Pramod Udyan
• The Union Government of India (GoI) issued a circular through the National Monument Authority (NMA) enacting ordinances for the holy shrine of Puri, limiting development in the immediate neighbourhood of the temple property to a 100-metre radius. The bylaws were later withdrawn on the request of the state government of Odisha.

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Jagannath Temple

• It is said to have been built by Anatavarman Chodaganga Deva, a king of the Eastern Ganga Dynasty in the 12th century AD.
• Jagannath Puri temple is also known as ‘Yamanika Tirtha’ where, as per the Hindu beliefs, the strength of ‘Yama,’ the deity of death, has been void owing to Lord Jagannath’s presence.
• This shrine is a component of the Char Dham pilgrimages (Badrinath, Dwaraka, Puri, Rameswaram), and is known as the “White Pagoda”.
• The temple features four entrances: the main gate, the Eastern ‘Singhdwara,’ having two crouching lions, the Southern ‘Ashwadwara,’ the Western ‘Vyaghra Dwara,’ and the Northern ‘Hastidwara.’ At each gate, there is a sculpture of each figure.
• The Aruna stambha, or sun pillar, stands right in front of the entryway and was originally located in the Sun Temple at Konark.
• The famous Rath Yatra festival and Bahuda Yatra are associated with this temple.

Recent Developments

• The foundation stone for the Puri historic corridor, which would cost at around Rs. 800 crores, is set to be laid shortly by the Odisha government.
• Puri is being developed into a world-class heritage city under the Augmentation of Basic Amenities and Development of Heritage and Architecture (ABADHA) plan.

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