JAMMU, Feb 18 : Jammu and Kashmir Lieutenant Governor Manoj Sinha on Wednesday laid the foundation stone of the Sri Shankaracharya Temple in Katra, a project pending since the 1960s.
“The wait that stretched across generations has finally ended. J&K UT and the nation will remember this day forever,” Sinha said on the microblogging platform X as per news agency Kashmir News Service (KNS).
The temple is coming up on the hillocks adjoining the Shri Mata Vaishno Devi Shrine.
The Lt Governor said the Shri Mata Vaishno Devi Shrine Board will bear the entire cost of Rs 31.
51 crore for the temple complex.
He added that 50 commercial shops will be constructed within the complex. These shops will be allotted to the landowners who donated their land for the temple.
Later, Sinha interacted with women entrepreneurs from Self-Help Groups (SHGs) in Reasi and adjoining areas.
He announced that the annual procurement of ‘Puja Samagri’ and ‘Prasad’ from these SHGs will be increased from Rs 5 crore to Rs 12 crore. (KNS)
