Bhubaneswar: The war of words between two Parliamentarians from Odisha continued on Saturday with BJP MP from Bhubaneswar Aparajita Sarangi targeting BJD MP from Puri Pinaki Mishra for alleged misinformation on the Puri Heritage Corridor Project.
Reacting to Pinaki’s statement to the media on the No Objection Certificate (NOC) issued by the National Monument Authority (NMA) to the state government on September 4 last year for construction of a cloakroom, shelter pavilion and toilets within the prohibited 75-metre zone of Jagannath Temple in Puri, Aparajita said that the paper being shown by him in support of the project is a letter by the NMA and not a NOC.
“The format of NOC is different and it will contain a plan, elevation and several other details,” she said.
Aparajita further said that it was unwarranted on his part to broach the topic again since it has already been discussed in the Lok Sabha.
She further said that no NOC has been issued by the Archaeological Survey of India (ASI), which is the custodian of the 12th -century shrine.
The Bhubaneswar MP reiterated that no construction work can be taken up within 100 metres of a protected monument as per the Ancient Monuments and Archaeological Sites and Remains (AMASR) Act and permission from ASI DG is a must to carry out any repair work in the prohibited area.
On March 31, Aparajita had raised the issue of violation of the AMASR Act in the implementation of the ambitious project, which aims to transform the abode of Lord Jagannath into an international place of heritage, in the Lok Sabha and demanded that the digging work should immediately be stopped to ensure the structural safety of the shrine.
“It comes as a surprise for all Odias that the Odisha government has been carrying out massive digging around the temple without the permission of the ASI and NMA,” she said.
Seeking the intervention of the Culture Ministry into the issue, Aparajita stressed that she was not against development but all such activities need to be carried out following the law of the land.
Dismissing the threat to the structural stability of the temple, Pinaki had told the Lower House that only four toilets were coming up in the area and the work is being carried out after getting a NOC from the NMA and ASI is also a part of the project.
He, however, was called out for not mentioning all the projects being taken up close to the shrine premises. Following this, Pinaki clarified that he could not inform the House about all the projects due to time constraints.
In a veiled attack on those criticising the project, he said some people have a ‘crab’ mentality. “They won’t do anything, neither will they let others take up any development work,” he added.
Notably, the ASI wrote to the Odisha government earlier last month warning it of potential threats of the Puri Heritage Corridor project to the structural safety of the shrine after Vidyavathi visited the temple in the last week of February to monitor the ongoing project work.
“During the visit, we found discrepancies. There were giant earth-moving machines and excavators, which are being used for digging activities close to the temple. The scale at which the process is underway can pose potential threats to the temple’s structure. We have written to the Puri District Collector and the Odisha Bridge and Construction Corporation Ltd (OBCC) and have sought their replies to the purpose of the massive digging activities,” superintending archaeologist, ASI Bhubaneswar circle, Arun Malik had told the media.
