Puri: The municipal authorities of Puri removed the Biju Patnaik Smruthi Peeth from Swargadwar premises late on Wednesday.
The samadhisthal of the former Chief Minister was evicted in presence of Puri collector Balwant Singh and senior district officials.
Notably, the state government at a high-level meeting on November 2 had decided to remove the Biju Patnaik memorial as part of Rs 5-crore renovation package for Swargadwar. The decision coincides with its efforts to make Puri a world heritage city. It had earlier announced a package of over Rs 3000 crore for the Pilgrim Town.
As decided in the meeting presided over by Chief Minister Naveen Patnaik at Lok Seva Bhawan here, the Rs 5 crore will be sanctioned for the renovation of Swargadwar from the Chief Minister’s Relief Fund (CMRF), in the first phase.
The renovation work will be taken up in association with the Phoenix Foundation. The Chief Minister had directed the departments concerned to complete of the renovation within six months from the date of commencement of the works.
Acting on the decision of the government, the Puri Municipality had begun the eviction of the old structures from Swargadwar premises on December 10. While an old building inside the premises to conduct post-death rituals was demolished, an old chimney set up by the Odisha State Pollution Control Board (OSPCB) was also pulled down.
The crematorium will have modern amenities for the pall-bearers and the cremation of bodies. Besides, arrangements will be made to facilitate the cremation round-the-clock. The crematorium will have rest rooms for the pall bearers. Besides, there will be massive plantation inside the premises. Special arrangements will be made for the collection and conservation of asthi (bones).
