Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Friday laid the foundation stones for multiple projects worth Rs 180 crore and dedicated to the nation various development projects in Kedarnath, Uttarakhand.
Modi who arrived at the Kedarnath on Friday morning inaugurated Shri Adi Shankaracharya Samadhi and unveiled the statue of Shri Adi Shankaracharya.
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“Some experiences are so supernatural, so infinite that they cannot be expressed in words this is how I feel at Baba Kedarnath Dham…Adi Shankaracharya’s life was as extraordinary as it was devoted to the welfare of the common man,”the Prime Minister said addressing a gathering of top state government officials, Chief Minister, religious heads of maths and others.
“Indian philosophy talks about human welfare and looks at life in a holistic way. Adi Shankaracharya did the work of making the society aware of this truth..Our cultural heritage centers of faith are being viewed with deserved and valid pride, as they should be,“ Modi said adding, “A grand temple of Lord Shri Ram is coming up in Ayodhya. Ayodhya is getting its glory back”.
The Prime Minister praised the Uttrakhand government for the massive infrastructure development being undertaken by it. He said India is committed to setting tough deadlines and goals.
“Today, India sets tough goals and deadlines for itself. Today, it is not acceptable for India to be timid about deadlines and goals.Keeping in mind the immense potential and full faith in the capabilities of the people of Uttarakhand, the State government is involved in the ‘Mahayagya’ of Uttarakhand’s development,”Modi said.
Prime Minister Modi laid the foundation stone for multiple projects worth over Rs 180 crore, including the Redevelopment of Sangam Ghat, First Aid and Tourist Facilitation Centre, Admin Office and Hospital, two Guest Houses, Police Station, Command and Control Centre, Mandakini Aasthapath Queue Management and Rainshelter and Saraswati Civic Amenity Building.
Earlier the Prime Minister offered prayers at the Kedarnath Temple. Prayers were offered and celebrations held at 12 Jyotirlingas and 4 dhams and many places of faith all over the country along with the event at Kedarnath Dham. All events were linked to the main event at Kedarnath Dham, a PMO note said.
Recalling his interaction with soldiers at Nowshera on Thursday. He said on Diwali, he took the feelings of 130 crore Indians to soldiers. The Prime Minister quoted a verse from Ramcharitmanas meaning some experiences are so supernatural, so infinite that they cannot be expressed in words. He said this is how he feels under the shelter of Baba Kedarnath.
The Prime Minister said that new facilities like shelters, facilitation centres will ease the lives of priests and devotees and allow them to fully immerse in the divine experience of the pilgrimage.
Recalling the Kedarnath floods in 2013, the Prime Minister noted that damage caused by the floods years ago was unimaginable. He said, “people who used to come here used to think that will this our Kedar Dham stand up again? But my inner voice was saying that it will stand with more pride than ever before.”
Modi said due to the grace of Lord Kedar and inspiration of Adi Shankaracharya and his experience of managing the aftermath of the Bhuj Earthquake, he could be of help in those difficult times. He struck a personal note and said that it is a blessing that he could serve the place which nurtured him earlier in his life. He thanked all the workers, priests, Rawal families of the priests, officials and the Chief Minister for relentlessly pursuing the development works at the Dham.
Talking about Adi Shankaracharya, Modi said that the meaning of Shankar in Sanskrit is – That is, the one who does welfare is Shankar. This grammar was directly proven by Acharya Shankar, he said
The Prime Minister further emphasized that today, our cultural heritage centers of faith are being viewed with deserved and valid pride, as they should be viewed. “A grand temple of Lord Shri Ram is coming up in Ayodhya. Ayodhya is getting its glory back. Just two days ago, the whole world saw the grand celebration of Deepotsav in Ayodhya. Today we can imagine how the ancient cultural form of India must have been”, Modi said.
Referring to the contribution of heroes of the Freedom Struggle, the Prime Minister asked the countrymen to visit the places related to the glorious freedom struggle of India and pious places of pilgrimage and get acquainted with the spirit of India.
The Prime Minister said that the third decade of the 21st century belongs to Uttarakhand. He informed that work is going on at a fast pace on the Chardham road project, connecting with the Chardham highways. In future, the work has started so that devotees can come here to Kedarnath ji through cable car. There is also the holy Hemkund Sahib Ji nearby. Work is going on to build a ropeway to make the darshan in Hemkund Sahib ji easy.
“Keeping in mind the immense potential and full faith in the capabilities of the people of Uttarakhand, the State government is involved in the ‘mahayagya’ of Uttarakhand’s development”, Modi said.
The Prime Minister lauded the discipline shown by Uttarakhand in the fight against Corona overcoming the geographical difficulties.
The Prime Minister also reviewed and inspected the executed and ongoing works along the Saraswati Aasthapath. Key infrastructure projects which have been completed, including Saraswati Retaining Wall Aasthapath and Ghats, Mandakini Retaining Wall Aasthapath, Tirth Purohit Houses and Garud Chatti bridge on river Mandakini. The projects have been completed at a cost of over Rs 130 crore.
