Puri residents, lawyers oppose transfer of Bagala Dharamshala land to hoteliers

They questioned the sale of the plots when the issue is pending in the state high court in a PIL case.

The state government in the last cabinet meeting has allocated 6.66 acres of land for settling the displaced traders under the heritage corridor project.

Sources said the six plots were sold in between August 5 to August 12.

In 1905 Seth Kanheyalal Bagala, a billionaire from Rajasthan had constructed the Dharamshala in about three acre land located alongside the Badadanda and handed it over to the collector of Puri, the president of the lodging house fund committee.

The Dharamshala was built for the benefit of the poor devotees while they stayed in the pilgrim city to perform religious rites.

The district administration demolished the dilapidated structures of the Dharamshala and entrusted India tourism development corporation in 2018 with the responsibility to reconstruct it under the PRASAD scheme.

Already Rs1.5 crore has been spent in the project.

However, the district collector in order to provide suitable land for the lodging houses had entrusted state construction corporation which made 22 plots and sought approval of plan from the Puri Konark Development Authority.

The Dharamshala was earlier transferred to Puri municipality but recently it was recorded in favour of revenue and disaster management department by the Puri additional Tahasildar in response to a request from the district administration.

The lawyers argued that the Dharamshala property could not be transferred by any means.

Noted environmentalist and social activist Jagannath Bastia in December 2019 had filed a PIL in the Odisha High Court.

The chief justice, after hearing the matter, admitted the case on December 17, 2019, issued notice to the government and other concerned parties to file their responses on the case.

The case, Mr Bastia claimed, is still pending.