Death Rituals Set For Facelift At Puri’s Swargadwar

Puri: Swargadwar (gateway to heaven), cremation ground of Hindus on the sandy beach in the south-western corner of Puri town, will soon get a facelift.

A Mumbai-based company has prepared a detailed project report (DPR), which the Puri municipal administration will receive in 10 days. Work will begin very soon if the municipal administration approves the new DPR. Else, the work will be done according to a DPR prepared by the earlier administration.

Talking to mediapersons, executive officer of Puri Municipality, Bijay Kumar Dash, said according to the earlier DPR the plan was to construct a boundary wall and 42 new pindis for cremation, install over 14 CCTV cameras and appoint more security guards.

Apart from this, the DPR had the provision of live-streaming cremations, construction of more rooms to perform death rituals (shraddha), and engagement of more municipal employees to monitor work.

“The DPR had a budget allocation of Rs 2.5 crore to implement the aforesaid works. But these could not be implemented as the municipality lacked sufficient funds,” Dash said.