Several projects are in the pipeline to put Ayodhya on the international tourist map. As per reports, National High-Speed Rail Corporation (NHSRC) has applied for a No Objection Certificate (NOC) from the Airport Authority of India to start the Bullet Train project connecting Ayodhya to New Delhi. As per the plan, the high-speed Bullet Train will connect New Delhi to three major pilgrimage cities in Uttar Pradesh that are Varanasi, Prayagraj and Ayodhya.
Earlier, a detailed plan of 941.5 KM track was tabled to connect Delhi and Varanasi via Agra-Lucknow-Prayagraj. Now Ayodhya has been added to the circuit with a separate link track of 130 KM between Lucknow and Ayodhya. The Bullet Train connecting Delhi to Ayodhya will cover a distance of over 670 KM with speed ranging between 320 KM/Hour to 350 KM/Hour. It will cut down travel time between Delhi and Ayodhya to three hours.
To initiate the project, several meetings were held between NHSRC and district officials to finalize the land for the station. The state government has allotted the land for the station to NHSRC, and it will be built near the Maryada Purushottam Shree Ramchandra Airport that is being constructed near the Lucknow-Gorakhpur highway bypass. The work for the project will be commenced as soon as NOC is received from AAI.
Times of India quoted Anoop Kumar Agarwal, Executive director of National High-Speed Rail Corporation, saying, “there is a plan to directly connect city of Lord Ram with the national capital”. An aerial survey has been done and the plan has also been approved by the Centre. “National High-Speed Rail Corporation will begin work as soon as we receive a no-objection certificate from the AAI. It will take seven years for completion of the project.”
On this particular route, two pairs of Bullet Trains will run. The first will connect New Delhi to Ayodhya, and the second would connect New Delhi to Varanasi. The government will spend around 200 lakh crore on the project.
Maryada Purushottam Shri Ram International Airport
Apart from Bullet Train, an international airport is also coming up in the city, and the authorities are working on the project at a fast pace. 75-acres of land was acquired for the project from eight villages, including Januar, Ganja, Pura Hussain Khan, Dharampur Sahadat, Nandpur, Kushmaha, Firozpur and Sarethi in the district. Reports suggest that the displaced farmers have got a plot, a house under the PM Housing scheme and monetary compensation for the land they sold to the government for the project.
Multiple projects in Ayodhya to make it a tourist hub
Ayodhya has faced discrimination in terms of development projects from the previous governments. Since BJP formed the government in the state, several projects have been announced for the districts. After Supreme Court passed the judgement in favour of Ram Lalla Virajmaan, countless projects have been announced for the district to fast-track the development in the area.
In July 2021, CM Yogi Adityanath announced that the city is to be developed as a religious, Vedic and solar-powered sustainable city. Ayodhya has a historical, cultural and spiritual foundation and the Central and State government want to develop it as a global tourist destination while being a sustainable city.
CM Yogi had said, “Heritage lighting should be done in the city. The panch Kosi, chaudah Kosi and chaurasi Kosi parikrama pathways should be developed keeping their religious significance in mind.” He added that the work for the conservation of water bodies, intelligent traffic management system, animal protection, outer ring road and other road projects, solar projects, tree plantation and new employment opportunities are to be initiated on priority.
आज मुझे यह बताते हुए प्रसन्नता हो रही है कि आदरणीय प्रधानमंत्री जी की ‘नई अयोध्या’ बनाने की संकल्पना के अनुरूप अयोध्या में अब तक ₹138 करोड़ की 17 परियोजनाएं पूर्ण हो चुकी हैं।
— Yogi Adityanath (@myogiadityanath) August 5, 2021
₹3136 करोड़ लागत की 54 परियोजनाओं में युद्ध स्तर पर कार्य चल रहा है।
Later on August 5, the first anniversary of Bhumi Pujan of Bhavya Ram Mandir in Ayodhya, he had announced that 17 projects worth Rs.138 crore had already been completed, and 54 projects worth Rs.3136 crore are under development.
