BHOPAL: Reports about starting a process to allow mining on a mythological famous hillock, where Lord Ram is believed to have taken a pledge to eliminate demons, have triggered a political row in Madhya Pradesh.
Siddha Pahad is located on 84 Kosi Parikrama route of the religious hotspot Chitrakoot in Satna district. According to the Aranya Kand of Ramcharitmanas, the Siddha Pahad is believed to have been formed by bones of seers, who were killed by demons. It’s also believed that during his stay in Chitrakoot in the 14 years of exile, Lord Ram had pledged to eliminate the demons on the same hillock.
The hillock lies on the long-proposed Ram Van Gaman Path. For the initial phase of the project, Shivraj Singh Chouhan government has sought Rs 500 crore from the central government. Importantly, the regional office of the MP State Pollution Control Board in Satna district has recently issued public information for holding a public hearing on September 30. The public hearing is a prerequisite for getting mandatory environmental clearance for allowing legitimate mining anywhere.
Meanwhile, Congress has launched a scathing attack on the Chouhan government over the issue. “After playing politics in the name of Lord Ram, the BJP government is now working in a well-planned manner to destroy the remains of the same God. The Congress won’t sit silent over the issue, but fight battles from roads to the Vidhan Sabha to prevent the destruction of the religiously- important hillock,” state Congress president and former MP CM Kamal Nath tweeted on Wednesday.
The Congress MLA from Chitrakoot, Neelanshu Chaturvedi, too has written a letter to the Satna district administration. However, it’s not only the opposition Congress, but a BJP MLA from Satna district has also expressed disappointment over the issue.
Maihar MLA Narayan Tripathi has also written a letter to CM Chouhan. “Any effort to damage or destroy those sites will amount to hurting of Hindu religious sentiments and it will not be tolerated by local residents and seers in Chitrakoot... I request you to stop the process of allowing mining on the hillock, and also declare the entire religious circuit in Chitrakoot as No Mining Zone. Otherwise, I will protest along with local residents on the day of the public hearing,” Tripathi wrote in the letter.
5-yr-old boy dies in mother’s lap after waiting for medical help at govt health centre
A 5-year-old seriously ill boy died in his mother’s arms at a government health facility for want of timely treatment. The incident happened on Wednesday at Bargi area of Madhya Pradesh’s Jabalpur district. The family members of Rishi Pandre, a resident of Tinheta Deori village, say they kept waiting for treatment for hours, but no one was present at the centre. A video of the incident has also gone viral. Jabalpur district chief medical and health officer Dr Sanjay Mishra said the incident will be probed, and death audit and community audit will be conducted.