Shiv Dham to come up at Gunji after LS polls
Shiv Dham to come up at Gunji after LS polls
B.D.Kasniyal
Pithoragarh, March 9
The construction the ‘Shiva Dham’ at Gunji (10500 feet) at Indo-China border in Pithoragarh district of Uttarakhand is likely to start after parliament election this year, said Kriti Chandra Arya ,District Tourist Officer of Pithoragarh.
Prime Minister Narendra Modi has sanctioned a sum of Rs 3220.61 lakh under ‘Swadesh Darshan’ scheme, a day before, to develop the border village of Gunji as ‘Shiva Dham’.
The ‘Shiv Dham’ infrastructure at Gunji will further enhance religious tourists to ‘Adi Kailash’, ‘Om Parvat’ and ‘Parwati Sarowar’, which are situated around Gunji village.
” The proposed construction of ‘Shiva Dham’ at Gunji include a mega statue of Lord Shiva, modern housing facilities to be used as residential area for the religious tourists, souvenir shops of local crafts goods and a cultural center to promote tribal culture,” said the officer.
The ‘Shiva Dham’ project at Gunji, the center of ‘Adi Kailash’ and ‘Kailash Mansarovar’ route, could become possible after it was sanctioned by Prime Minister Narendra Modi, who visited ‘Adi Kailash Dham’ of Lord Shiva in October last year.”Though the ‘Adi Kailash yatra’ was being managed from last 40 years, it gained significance when ‘Kailash Mansarovar yatra’ was not permitted by China after the year 2019 from this route.” Though ‘Adi Kailash’ cannot become an alternative of ‘Kailash Mansarowar’ but it has potential to be as another ‘Shiv Dham’ in Himalaya for lakhs of devotees of Lord Shiva, ” said the DTO.
According to tourism department sources, the inquiries for ‘Adi Kailash’ have increased three times after the Prime Minister’s visit in October last year.”The real number of pilgrims to Adi kailash could be known only after April 15 this year, when the bookings for the religious place gets started,” said the officer.
However, the local villagers have objected to the take over of a 20 acres of land by tourist department for the purpose of construction of ‘Shiv Dham’ at Gunji. The villagers in a representation to the administration claimed that all the five villages of Vyans valley namely Gunji, Nabi, Rongkong, Kuti and Napalchu, organise a horse race in the ground after worshiping the Vyans Rishi every year. They pleaded that the administration should built ‘Shiv Dham’ on any alternate land and spare the traditional ground used for traditional horse race at Gunji.
