Saundatti Yallamma temple will be developed on the lines of Tirupati-Tirumala Devasathanams and Sri Kshetra Dharmasthala, Chief Minister Siddaramaiah said in Saundatti of Belagavi district on Sunday.
“Officials will study the Tirupati-Tirumala model and prepare a comprehensive plan for the development of the temple and Saundatti,” he said.
He said that the government will take up road works in the temple town and in the surrounding areas. A huge kitchen and a dining hall, a queue complex and other infrastructure facilities will come up, he said.
“However, not all devotees eat at the temple. They come here and cook for themselves. We will provide fuel and individual kitchen facilities for such devotees also,” the Chief Minister said.
He said that there is 1,087 acres of land available in Saundatti for development.
“All the facilities will be able to provide shelter and food to around 7,000-8,000 people per day in future,” he said.
Minister Satish Jarkiholi and MLA Vishwas Vaidya gifting Chief Minister Siddaramaiah an image of Sri Renuka Yallamma at Saundatti in Belagvi district on Sunday. | Photo Credit: P.K. Badiger
He was addressing a public rally after a meeting with officials. He inaugurated a dormitory built at a cost of ₹22 crore, a commercial complex built by the Karnataka State Women’s Development Corporation at a cost of ₹10 crore and launched some works completed by the Public Works Department.
“The State government is committed to developing the Saundatti Yallamma Temple complex into a pilgrimage centre with modern facilities. However, all-round development is possible only with the cooperation of the local people and traders,” he said.
He asked shopkeepers to vacate shops that are not legally allotted to them to allow free movement of traffic on the main road and lanes in the town.
“They will be allotted other shops on compassionate grounds,” he said. He said that a compound wall will be built to stop encroachment of temple property.
He said that the scheme of free bus travel for women has led to an increase in the number of visitors to the temple.
“Since the launch of the scheme, around 300 crore women have travelled free under the facility across the State,” he said.
“The temple receives around 1.5 crore-2 crore visitors every year. The devotees are from Goa, Maharashtra, Telangana and Andhra Pradesh, apart from various districts of Karnataka. Its revenue is around ₹25 crore per year. The temple has a deposit of around ₹45 crore. With increased facilities, we can increase its revenue further,” the Chief Minister said.
“Shelter for pilgrims, safe and hygienic facilities and easy access to the town are our priorities,” he said. “The State Tourism Development Board and the Temple Committee will jointly provide necessary infrastructure facilities,” he said.
The Chief Minister said that officials have submitted a proposal to build a queue complex that can shelter around 5,000-6,000 people at one time. They will have seating arrangement, snacks and drinking water. The Ennegonda public bath will be developed on the lines of those in Rameswaram in Tamil Nadu where the holy water is sprayed on devotees. Facilities will be made available for devotees for washing their clothes also.
He said that Superintendent of Police Bheema Shankar Guled has him assured of providing an intranet-based walkie-talkie system for use in Saundatti to handle the huge rush on festival days.
Earlier, the Chief Minister, the Deputy Chief Minister and their Cabinet colleagues visited the Yallamma Temple and offered special prayers.
In his speech, Minister H.K. Patil sought support from the State government to build a Dasoha Bhavan, a kitchen and dining hall that can feed around 3,000 people at a time.
Responding to this, the Chief Minister said that it will be surely taken up next year. He said that he has already instructed the Public Works Minister to take up roadworks and other facilities in Saundatti.
Deputy Chief Minister D.K. Shivakumar said that some facilities will be developed on public-private partnership basis. A devotee from Maharashtra has offered to build a three-storeyed building for pilgrims if he is given two acres of land. “We should consider that,” he said and added that Harsha Sugars has sought land to build similar facilities.
Minister Lakshmi Hebbalkar sought a grant of ₹25 crore for the development of the temple and Saundatti.
Published - October 13, 2024 10:18 pm IST
