Govt to come up with Jagannath temple in Digha

Kolkata: Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee on Thursday announced that the state government would construct a Jagannath temple near Jagannath Ghat in Digha, which has already emerged as a major tourist destination.

Banerjee was speaking at the administrative review meeting in East Midnapore. The Jagannath temple would be set up in the district along the footsteps of the temple in Puri, where large numbers of devotees congregate to offer their prayers.

"We are going to construct a temple at Jagannath Ghat in Digha, similar to Puri. The ghat would also be renovated. The Jagannath temple that we see in Puri had been constructed many years ago. We are developing a temple here keeping it in mind," the Chief Minister said.

She instructed the state Tourism department to prepare a Detailed Project Report (DPR) after discussing the matter in detail with the district administration. It may be mentioned here that after coming to power, the Mamata Banerjee government had taken up a beautification drive in the beach town and along the sea shore. Since then, the footfall of tourists in Digha and other beach towns in the district has gone up significantly.

During her meeting with the administrative officials, Banerjee inquired about the latest status of the 3 marine bridges which she had proposed 3-4 years ago. The officials told her that the construction of two bridges would be started within one year, while the third one would take some time. The Chief Minister advised the Public Works Department (PWD) to start all the three projects simultaneously. She instructed the government officials to expedite the project.

Banerjee announced that construction of the International Convention Centre at Digha would be completed within the next two months. She laid a great emphasis on the cleanliness of the place. She instructed the local administration to consider if the local Nuliahs (sea divers) can be inducted under the 100 days work scheme to maintain cleanliness of the beach town.

"Digha has emerged to be one of the key tourist places in the state. A large number of people visit the place every day. Maintaining cleanliness must be the top priority. The Nuliahs who act as civic defense workers during any incident, can be engaged in two shifts for maintaining cleanliness," she added.

She also expressed her dissatisfaction over the overdue wages of the Nuliahs. She wanted to know from the administrative officials why they have not been getting money since September. They get a wage of Rs 300 per day and they work 25 days a month.

"Those who save the lives of others risking their own, are not getting their wages. They should be brought under the Swasthya Sathi scheme. Take necessary steps to disburse their dues on immediate basis," Banerjee told the district administration.

She also stated that Tajpur port will be constructed at an estimated cost of Rs 12,000 crore, where various other ancillaries would come up, creating job opportunities. A fund of Rs 17,000 crore has already been invested for various projects in the district, while many others worth nearly Rs 8,600 crore are in the pipeline.

She also inquired about the various fishery development schemes that are being run in the district. She proposed to set up a fish

land bank and marketing centres where the fishermen can sell their catches.

In reply to a question posed by state Transport minister Suvendu Adhikari, the Chief Minister asked the Home Secretary to expedite the investigation into the disappearance of people from Nandigram that took place during the Left Front regime. The CID has been investigating the case.