Bhubaneswar: Bhubaneswar (Ekamra) legislator and Minister Science & Technology Ashok Chandra Panda has expressed strong reactions to the Centre’s objection to the Odisha government’s Shri Lingaraj Temple Ordinance.
Panda stated that clarifications have been given to the Centre on two occasions earlier through video conferencing and the same could have been done too this time had the Centre asked the State government directly.
“Is Ekamra Kshetra Development Project undertaken by Chief Minister Naveen Patnaik causing any loss to anyone? I can’t comment if it is causing any political loss to anyone. A toilet, a drinking water facility or a rest shed somewhere has no scope for causing any loss to the general public,” said Panda.
The Minister was of the opinion that it is not the end of the day or the end of the road, there is always a way out and shall remain.
“The Central government undertook the development of Kashi Vishwanath, Kedarnath, and Somnath for the benefit of devotees. Has that all been done in conformity with the Ancient Monuments and Archaeological Sites and Remains Act, 1958 (AMASR Act)?” Panda asked.
It is pertinent to mention here that the Centre has sought clarifications on certain clauses of the State government’s Shri Lingaraj Temple Ordinance as it feels the proposed law is outside the competence of the State legislature as it could conflict with the AMASR Act since it covers 12 Centrally-protected monuments, including the Shri Lingaraj Temple and three ancient tanks.
The Raj Bhavan received a letter from the Ministry of Home Affairs on March 23 which was forwarded to Chief Secretary Suresh Chandra Mohapatra on March 31.
The ordinance was passed in the State Cabinet in December 2020 to bring the Lingaraj Temple and its eight associated shrines in Bhubaneswar under a separate law.
The Lingaraj Temple is currently governed under the Odisha Hindu Religious Endowment Act, 1951, which is the common legislation for most shrines.
The State’s ordinance has faced objections from the Ministries of Culture and Rural Development (Department of Land Resources) since temples and tanks, seeking to be covered under the ordinance, are Centrally protected monuments.
The ordinance has provisions for forming a 15-member committee with a senior Hindu IAS officer to be appointed as its chief administrator on the lines of Jagannath Temple in Puri, which is governed by the Shri Jagannath Temple Act, 1955.
The AMASR Act of 1958 prohibits new constructions in the area within 100 meters of a protected monument.
Further, under the Act areas within 200 meters are identified as the regulated area where for undertaking construction-related activities including repairs permission have to be taken from the competent authority on recommendation from National Monuments Authority (NMA).
The Centre feels that the State’s ordinance will be in conflict with the AMASR Act as certain clauses of it seek to conserve and repair the temples or tanks.
The State government had in 2019 announced the Ekamra Kshetra Development Project for the development and beautification of the 11th-century shrine and its periphery.
