Heritage city tag for Ayodhya
With path for the construction of Ram temple in Ayodhya now clear, Yogi Adityanath government is now vying to secure a tag of ‘World Heritage City’ for the temple town. The ancient religious city fulfils eight out of the 10 criteria set by the UNESCO to vie for the coveted heritage tag. A 400-page report on whether Ayodhya merits a UNESCO tag has been compiled by Ram Manohar Lohia Awadh University, Faizabad following a survey of the city.
Lengthy wait for match stick trick
It’s been quite a lengthy wait for heritage enthusiasts and tourists to watch famous match stick trick, highlighting the amazing acoustics of the 163-feet Persian Hall of the Bada Imambada in the City of Nawabs. Tourists simply couldn’t help marvelling at how the sound of a match stick ignited at one side of the sprawling balcony in the hall could be heard clearly at the other end. The sound of a paper being torn was also clearly audible, illustrating how the faintest of sounds got amplified. However, it’s been more than 13 months now that the balcony has been closed by the Archaeological Survey of India (ASI),citing urgent maintenance and repair work. However, restoration work is yet to begin.
‘Ganga Aarti’ to be performed in 44 villages
To connect with those residing along Ganga ghats in Varanasi and ensure their participation in cleaning the holy river, a daily ‘Ganga Aarti’ will be performed in 44 villages, commonly known as Ganga villages, in Varanasi. The aarti will take place every morning and a special platform would be built along the river in each of the 44 villages. A local, who could perform Ganga Aarti daily, will be identified in each village. The village committees will be asked to ensure that the Ganga Aarti is performed daily.
‘Shaheed Path’ gets a colourful makeover
Shaheed Path has got a colourful makeover, prompting commuters to pause mid-journey for a look. The floral motifs and colourful underpasses are proving to be crowd pullers. The change is a part of a street art project, which, in turn, is an extension of the Smart City mission launched recently. Shaheed Path is the most common route for commuters and VIPs heading to the airport. The theme for 27-km long Shaheed Path is floral patterns and Indian culture. A Delhi-based company was hired for the makeover. The underpasses, sidewalls and other parts of the structure received a lick of paint as part of the project.
Namita Bajpai
Our correspondent in Uttar Pradesh
namita.bajpai@newindianexpress