The temple town of Ayodhya is set for a major facelift with approvals in the pipeline for an international airport, a ring road, two bus terminals, doubling of the railway line and a new township in 1,200 acres for institutional establishments like holiday inns and cultural trusts, among others.

Ayodhya District Magistrate Anuj Kumar Jha said a lot of proposals for development of the temple city are under consideration of the administration. Works have already begun in certain projects and are on the threshold of completion.

“Our idea is to complete the developmental projects for improving the access and facilitation of the pilgrims before the completion of the Ram Mandir. The projects include construction of a multi-level parking, a ring road, widening of the approach roads, flyover over the railway line and doubling of the railway tracks among others. A bus depot with the capacity of parking 150 buses is ready for inauguration any time.”

The daily footfall of the pilgrims has already doubled from the earlier 5,000 to 6,000 to 10,0000-12,000. When the Ram Mandir is complete, the footfall of pilgrims is expected to be 1-1.5 lakh pilgrims and infrastructure is being planned accordingly, he said.

Sixty to seventy per cent of the land for the international airport in Ayodhya has been identified and consent of the land holders have been obtained. As much as 1,200 acres of land for development of a new township for institutional development has been notified for development by the UP Awas Vikas Nigam, he said.

A number of state governments have approached the district administration for allotment of land in the proposed township for construction of their respective Bhavans (building complexes). Certain corporate houses have also evinced interest in obtaining land in the institutional area of the proposed township, officials said. 

Access from the Lucknow highway is planned to be widened, four-laning of the highway from Rai Bareily connecting the town has been approved besides the construction of the highway from Varanasi. Construction of the highway from Prayagraj is under consideration of the government. 

On a question on the pace of the construction of the temple, he said a riverine patch has been found beneath the foundation of the proposed temple complex and complete excavation of 10-12 metres on the surface is being undertaken on the side where the sub-strata has been identified to be that of the Saryu river. Top engineers are on the job on the site and a decision will be taken to prepare the base with either a mix of lime or concrete. Upon this bed of lime or concrete mix, a layer of stones will be laid to support the 1,200 pillars of the new temple, he said, adding 40 per cent of the work or about one floor of the temple has been readied at workshops, both onsite and offsite. Once the pillars are laid, the stone structures will be enjoined to create the structure, he said.

The National Highways Authority of India (NHAI) is in the final stages of finalising the alignment of the Ring Road for the temple town.

Widening of the Panch Kosi and 14-Kosi Parikrama and development of pilgrims parks are also part of the redevelopment projects as over 25 lakh pilgrims traverse these routes on certain festive occasions like Ram Navami, he said.

“Ten years down the line, there will be a complete makeover of the temple town and it will not only emerge as a major attraction of pilgrimage from around the globe but will also serve as an engine of growth in the region,” he added.