<p>Sambalpur: Odisha Chief Minister Naveen Patnaik on Saturday inaugurated the redeveloped Samaleswari Temple in Sambalpur district, one of the most revered shrines in the western region of the state.</p><p>The 16th-century Samaleswari Temple on the banks of the Mahanadi has undergone transformation over 39 acres of its peripheral area under a Rs 200-crore project.</p><p>Amenities such as a boarding house for pilgrims, a park, a cafeteria, new Trust Board Office and a museum came up as part of the Samaleswari Temple Area Management and Local Economy Initiatives (SAMALEI) project.</p><p>The programme was held 10 days after the opening of the Heritage Corridor Project in the Jagannath Tempe in Puri.</p>.Ahead of polls, CM Naveen Patnaik counters BJP's 'Jai Sri Ram' with 'Jai Jagannath' in Odisha.<p>Patnaik unveiled the SAMALEI project after offering prayers at Maa Samaleswari temple in the presence of dignitaries, temple priests and servitors.</p><p>The chief minister also joined the yagna performed on the occasion.</p><p>Programmes at the Jagannath temple on January 17 and Samaleswari Temple on Saturday were strategically timed with the Ram Mandir consecration ceremony in Ayodhya on January 22.</p><p>The Odisha Bridge and Construction Corporation (OBCC), which implemented the Heritage Corridor Project in Puri, was also assigned the transformation of the SAMALEI project.</p><p>Patnaik in a video message to the people said that Odisha will always remember those who volunteered to forego their land for the SAMALEI project.</p><p>The Chief Minister also said that the SAMALEI project would help boost tourism and local economy in the western region.</p><p>He said the project could be completed with the blessings of Maa Samaleswari despite the obstacles created due to the Covid-19 pandemic. The work for the project started in February 2021.</p><p>Earlier on Friday, hundreds of women participated in the Kalash Shobha Yatra. The water brought during the Yatra was used for the holy bath of the deity.</p>
<p>Sambalpur: Odisha Chief Minister Naveen Patnaik on Saturday inaugurated the redeveloped Samaleswari Temple in Sambalpur district, one of the most revered shrines in the western region of the state.</p><p>The 16th-century Samaleswari Temple on the banks of the Mahanadi has undergone transformation over 39 acres of its peripheral area under a Rs 200-crore project.</p><p>Amenities such as a boarding house for pilgrims, a park, a cafeteria, new Trust Board Office and a museum came up as part of the Samaleswari Temple Area Management and Local Economy Initiatives (SAMALEI) project.</p><p>The programme was held 10 days after the opening of the Heritage Corridor Project in the Jagannath Tempe in Puri.</p>.Ahead of polls, CM Naveen Patnaik counters BJP's 'Jai Sri Ram' with 'Jai Jagannath' in Odisha.<p>Patnaik unveiled the SAMALEI project after offering prayers at Maa Samaleswari temple in the presence of dignitaries, temple priests and servitors.</p><p>The chief minister also joined the yagna performed on the occasion.</p><p>Programmes at the Jagannath temple on January 17 and Samaleswari Temple on Saturday were strategically timed with the Ram Mandir consecration ceremony in Ayodhya on January 22.</p><p>The Odisha Bridge and Construction Corporation (OBCC), which implemented the Heritage Corridor Project in Puri, was also assigned the transformation of the SAMALEI project.</p><p>Patnaik in a video message to the people said that Odisha will always remember those who volunteered to forego their land for the SAMALEI project.</p><p>The Chief Minister also said that the SAMALEI project would help boost tourism and local economy in the western region.</p><p>He said the project could be completed with the blessings of Maa Samaleswari despite the obstacles created due to the Covid-19 pandemic. The work for the project started in February 2021.</p><p>Earlier on Friday, hundreds of women participated in the Kalash Shobha Yatra. The water brought during the Yatra was used for the holy bath of the deity.</p>