Somnath Promenade, exhibition centre: Here’s all PM Modi will inaugurate in Gujarat on August 20

The Somnath Exhibition Centre on the Tourist Facilitation Centre premises has an exhibit of parts dismantled from the old temple. (Picture courtesy: IE)

Prime Minister Narendra Modi, on August 20, will lay the foundation stone and inaugurate a slew of projects in Somnath in Gujarat via videoconferencing.

The Somnath Promenade, reconstructed temple precinct of Old (Juna) Somnath, and the Somnath Exhibition Centre are some of the projects Modi will inaugurate. Modi will also lay virtually the foundation stone for the Shree Parvati Temple during the event.

Modi is the chairman of the Shree Somnath Trust, the trust that maintains and manages the Somnath temple complex — among the country’s most important places of worship.

Developed under the Pilgrimage Rejuvenation and Spiritual, Heritage Augmentation Drive (PRASHAD) and covering 1.48 km, the Somnath Promenade was built at a cost of Rs 47 crore.

In December 2018, Union Home Minister Amit Shah, then the national president of the BJP and a trustee of the Shree Somnath Trust, laid the project’s foundation stone. The promenade begins from Sagar Darshan, the guest house beside the temple, and culminates at the Triveni Sangam — the confluence of the Hiran, Kapila and the mythical Saraswati rivers. The promenade aims to prevent coastal erosion while adding to facilities for the thousands of pilgrims who arrive for darshan.

The Somnath Exhibition Centre on the Tourist Facilitation Centre premises has an exhibit of parts dismantled from the old temple. The sculptures bear the hallmark of the Nagar style temple architecture.

The Shree Somnath Trust completed the reconstructed temple precinct for Rs 3.5 crore. Also referred to as Ahilyabai Temple, the temple was constructed by Queen Ahilyabai of Indore when she found the old temple to be in ruins.

The proposed Shree Parvati Temple will be constructed at a cost of Rs 30 crore.

Shah, Gujarat Chief Minister Vijay Rupani, Deputy Chief Minister Nitin Patel, and Union Tourism Minister G. Kishan Reddy are all expected to attend the event.