Atal Bihari Vajpayee's birthplace to woo tourists with Rs 25 crore boost

Lucknow: Bateshwar, the birthplace of former prime minister Atal Bihari Vajpayee, is now listed for development as a tourist destination by the Uttar Pradesh tourism department.

Bateshwar, 80 km from Agra, is also famous for its 101 Shiva temples built on the bank of the Yamuna and is a major Jain pilgrimage centre.

According to UP tourism officials, Rs 25 crore will be spent on this project.

A senior official said that recently a meeting was called by the Agra district magistrate where different departments and stakeholders were asked to give their proposal under the scheme.

A suggestion was given that Bateshwar, where some works were carried out in the past, could be further developed given its importance as a major religious centre for Hindus and Jains.

Under the project, ghats will be renovated along with developmental work like road and bridge repair.

Some Rs 18 crore will be spent on renovation of the ghats alone. Senior tourism officials have visited the spot and a proposal is now being prepared for presentation before the designated committee.

The committee will then decide about the agency — Central or state government — which will provide the funds, the official added. At present, a project worth Rs 4.5 crore of UP tourism is already underway at Bateshwar and conservation of three temples and a few ghats have been done under the ongoing project.

Bateshwar gained importance after BJP formed government in the state in March this year when UP chief minister Yogi Adityanath sent a letter to railway minister Suresh Prabhu to ensure halting of Mumbai-Ghazipur express train at Bateshwar.

Mr Adityanath said Jain pilgrims coming from Rajasthan and other cities to Shauripur in Bateshwar would benefit by this service.