BSP govt planning several schemes for Ayodhya, Faizabad

LUCKNOW, Jan 29 (Agencies): In a bid to make inroads in the traditional BJP bastions of Ayodhya and Faizabad, the BSP government is planning to pump in several crores to improve the infrastructure in the twin cities besides renovating temples and historical sites in the area.

"The government has decided to launch development works worth several crores in Ayodhya and Faizabad.

The Chief Minister would lay the foundation stones of these projects soon, probably next month," a senior official said.

The government's scheme of things include an international Ramlila Centre, Buddha Vihar, Shilpgram, Ram Katha Museum and renovation of temples, ghats and ponds in the twin cities, which have been a stronghold of the BJP after the Ram Mandir movement in 1990.

"Initially, more than three dozen projects have been identified, to be executed by various departments like PWD, Urban Development, Culture and Tourism," the official said.

Sources said that the government plans to develop Buddha Vihar at a cost of Rs 50 crore and an international Ramlila Centre at an estimated cost of Rs 22.9 crore.

"Around Rs 2.5 crore has been earmarked for Shilpgram and Rs 1.15 crore to renovate and give a facelift to Tulsi auditorium in Ayodhya," he said.

Under the plan, facelift of Ram ki Pauri, ghats and Mani Parvat is also on the cards.

"Development of historical ponds, temples, ghats and ashrams would be undertaken from the tourism point of view," he added.

The official said that a mini police line and allotment of land for state and Central police deployed for the security of Ram Janam Bhoomi complex has also been proposed.

Other than this, around Rs 100 crore would be pumped in to improve infrastructure facilities, which include road repairs and widening, drinking water and street lights specially for Chaudhakosi Parikrama Marg, in Ayodhya and Faizabad.

The proposals are likely to be approved at a meeting of the State Advisory Board tomorrow.

"Once the projects are approved by the board, the Chief Minister would lay the foundation stones.

Though the date is yet to be fixed, the function is likely to be held in the first week of February," the official said, adding the government is keen to implement the schemes at the earliest keeping in mind the possibility of notification for the Lok Sabha elections by February end.

The BSP had already named erstwhile king of Ayodhya Vimlendra Mohan Pratap Mishra "Pappu Bhaiya", who enjoys a good rapport with the local people, as its candidate for Faizabad parliamentary constituency.

Ayodhya is the third holy city, where a host of development projects would be launched by the BSP government.

Last year, the government announced similar projects for Mathura and Varanasi, which too are strongholds of the BJP.

While Mayawati announced projects worth Rs 365 crore for Mathura on August 6, she showered sops of Rs 800 crore on Varanasi on December 20.

Hundreds from UP arrive in Delhi to protest against harassment of Muslim youth New Delhi, Jan 29: Hundreds of Muslims from Uttar Pradesh, wanting to hold demonstrations in the national capital against the alleged harassment of youths by police on the pretext of tackling terror, arrived at the Old Delhi Railway Station here in a special train amid tight security early Thursday.

A posse of paramilitary and police personnel welcomed the train, christened the Ulema Express, at the heavily guarded platform number A1 of the station at about 1.30 a.m., nearly three hours before the scheduled time of arrival.

The train, which set off from Uttar Pradesh's Azamgarh town at about 12.30 p.m.

Wednesday, was to arrive here at 4 a.m.

Thursday but reached early since it was not allowed to halt at any station between Kanpur and New Delhi for security reasons, an official said.

Most occupants of the train, not willing to come out of the coaches before their scheduled 11 a.m.

protest rally at Jantar Mantar in the heart of the national capital, pulled down window shutters when this reporter tried to speak to them.

The Muslims, angry about the killing of two young men from Azamgarh in a shootout with the police in the Batla House area of New Delhi a few months ago, want to hold the rally to press upon the government their demand to set up a judicial probe into the shootout, headed by a sitting supreme court judge and make the report public within 30 days.

The Delhi Police had accused the men killed in the shootout of being involved in the Sep 13 serial bombings in the national capital.

"We waited enough but by awarding the Ashok Chakra to M.C.

Sharma (the police inspector killed in the shootout) the Congress led UPA (United Progressive Alliance) has authenticated the Sep 19 Batla House encounter," Mulana Amir Rasadi, convener of Ulama Council that organised the Ulema Express trip, told IANS.

"The fact remains that we have lost our two promising youths.

Sharma was honoured even before any probe into such a horrible incident.

We have lost all faith in the system and are now united to show New Delhi our real strength," Rasadi said.

The council has paid Rs.1.4 million to the railways to charter the train and Rs.300,000 as a security deposit for the journey.

Each traveller bought a coupon of Rs.700 for the trip.

The train will take them back Thursday evening.

"We have organised this historic train with the help of individual donations," said the thin, bespectaled Rasadi, who is in his early 50s.

The 22 coaches of the train carried 90-odd passengers each.

There was enough food for everyone on the train - bread, kabaabs, rice and gram.

But they needed water and pulled the emergency brake chain at many railway stations between Azamgarh and Kanpur.

After the passengers fell asleep, the train sped off, not halting till Delhi.

Maulana Wasiullah, a passenger who spoke after much persuading, said: "Very soon we will be a political force and in a position to dictate terms to the central government.

This is the last option left with us to save our children from the bullet of the police.

The UPA or the BSP (Bahujan Samaj Party), they all have anti-Muslim instincts, which is simply unacceptable in any civil society." About us | Advertise | Other Publications | Subscriptions | Weather | Letters | Send Mail Disclaimer: Information is being made available at this site purely as a measure of public facilitation.

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