Chandigarh, October 23: Punjab Chief Minister Captain Amarinder Singh on Friday approved additional funds to the tune of Rs.55 crore for sprucing up the Bhagwan Valmiki Tirath Sthal at Ram Tirath in Amritsar, while directing the Cultural Affairs Department to develop the historic shrine as a world-class tourist attraction.
The funds are in addition to the Rs.195.76 crore already spent on the prestigious project at the holy shrine which attracts devotees of all faiths and tourists from across the world. Of the Rs. 55 crore, Rs. 30 crore will be spent for the completion of the shrine’s panorama, depicting the life and teachings of Bhagwan Valmiki ji, who composed the epic Ramayana. The rest will be spent on several development works, including installation of filtration plant for sarovar, completion of parikarma, facade lighting, furnishings of Sarai for devotees, solar power system etc.
Chairing a high level meeting of Bhagwan Valmiki Tirath Sthal Shrine Board here, Captain Amarinder Singh also appointed Amritsar Deputy Commissioner as CEO of the Shrine Board and directed him to ensure proper upkeep and maintenance of the shrine. He also gave the nod for deployment of employees for this purpose.
Cultural Affairs & Tourism Minister Charanjit Singh Channi, Forests, Social Justice, Empowerment and Minorities Minister Sadhu Singh Dharamsot, MLAs Sukhwinder Singh Danny, Pawan Kumar Adia and Dr. Raj Kumar Verka, Additional Chief Secretary Cultural Affairs & Tourism Sanjay Kumar, Principal Secretary Finance KAP Sinha and Principal Secretary Planning Jaspal Singh attended the virtual meeting.