Bhubaneswar: The International White Peace Pagoda and Buddhist shrine known as Dhauli Shanti Stupa built in 1972 by collaborative efforts of Kalinga Nippon Budha Sangha and the Government of Odisha will complete 50 years this year.
Odisha government today decided to commemorate the historic occasion with a celebration of the Shanti Stupa’s golden jubilee.
The decision was taken at a high-level meeting chaired by Chief Secretary Suresh Chandra Mahapatra held in the Lok Seva Bhawan Conference Hall today.
Additional Chief Secretary Odia Literature, Language and Culture Madhusudan Padhi outlined the issues for discussion in the meeting.
It was decided that the main celebration would be held on October 28. It was estimated that around 150 monks from different parts of the globe would join the auspicious celebration.
A Peace March would be held from Bhubaneswar to Dhauli on that day. The occasion would be echoed with pious Buddhist Chanting and Sutras.
Reviewing the progress of the preparatory works, Chief Secretary Mahapatra directed concerned departments to complete the structural preservation and beautification works by end of the current month.
State Government has made provisions of around Rs 1.87 crore for these works. A pathway around the Stupa would also be developed.
Padma Bibhusan sculptor Sudarshan Sahoo said that the Japanese engineers who recently came to see structural preservation works appreciated the high-quality work being done by State Government.
The Chief Monk in charge of the Peace Pagoda, present in the meeting also expressed his satisfaction on the quality and progress of the works.
Further, Chief Secretary Mahapatra directed the local Dhauli Development Committee functioning under the chairmanship of Khordha Collector to plan out the details regarding the erection of the Golden Jubilee Stage, its design, fabrication, carpeting, flower decoration, arrival and departure of the delegation and guests from other counties, their stay, reception etc with financial estimates.
The committee was asked to submit it to Government through the department of Odia Language, Literature and Culture. The department was asked to expedite financial provision for these activities.
The issues related to the renovation of the existing platform, restoration of light and sound show, trimming of the trees obstructing the complete view of the Stupa, maintenance of street lights, relocation of craft bazaar and shopping complex to a conspicuous site etc were discussed and resolved in the meeting.
Chief Secretary Mahapatra directed that regular maintenance and upkeep works of the tourist facilities set up at Dhauli would be done by Dhauli Development Committee by utilization of the revenue generated from entry fee, parking fee etc.
Padma Bibhusan Sudarshan Sahoo, Additional Chief Secretary M S Padhi, Principal Secretary Finance Vishal Kumar Dev, Director Tourism Sachin Ramchandra Jadhav, Director Information and Public Relation Indramani Tripathy, Director Culture Ranjan Kumar Das along with senior officers and engineers from concerned departments participated in the discussion.
