BHUBANESWAR: Union Minister for Tourism and Culture Prahlad Singh Patel has assured to include at least two most visited tourist places of Odisha in the Centre’s proposed list of sites which would be developed into iconic tourist destinations.
Tourism Minister Jyoti Prakash Panigrahi said the Union Minister announced this during an interaction at State Tourism Ministers’ Conference held in New Delhi on Tuesday.
“He expressed displeasure over Odisha not finding a place in the iconic site list. Stating that monuments like Puri and Konark temples having historical importance cannot be ignored, he said those sites will soon be listed under the scheme,” Panigrahi said.
On July 8, The New Indian Express had highlighted Odisha’s exclusion in the Centre list sparking off a controversy with leaders irrespective of party affiliations demanding inclusion of tourist destinations from the State.
Chief Minister Naveen Patnaik had also urged Patel seeking inclusion of at least two important places of attraction from Odisha in the list of iconic tourist destinations.
Union Minister Dharmendra Pradhan and all BJP MPs from the State had also urged the Union Tourism Minister to include the Jagannath temple at Puri and Sun Temple at Konark in the list.