PIONEER EDGE NEWS SERVICE | Dehradun
Tourism minister Satpal Maharaj has requested Union Tourism and Culture minister Gajendra Singh Shekhawat to ensure idols must be installed in vacant temples in Uttarakhand. He met Shekhawat in New Delhi on Friday.
During the meeting, he also discussed issues related to the Archaeological Survey of India (ASI) and other matters connected to public interest. Maharaj said that the ASI currently maintains a restricted distance of 100 metres around protected sites but this norm creates difficulties in hilly and urban areas where land availability is limited.
He submitted a written request to reduce the restricted distance to 30 to 40 metres in mountainous regions, as many residential houses already exist within the 100-metre range.
Maharaj informed the Union minister that the Katarmal Sun Temple in Almora district does not have a dome and several temples across the country remain without idols since the British period. He requested that idols should be installed in such temples, stating that it is necessary to maintain cultural tradition.
Maharaj also raised the issue of sanitation in public facilities. He said that toilets in hotels and petrol pumps often lack proper maintenance and the absence of signboards outside hotels causes inconvenience for tourists.
He requested that hotels display boards indicating the availability of western commodes and that petrol pumps construct separate toilets for the general public and VIPs, with strict enforcement of cleanliness.
