Lingaraj Temple destroyed?

About Lingaraj Temple

Lingaraja Temple is a Hindu temple dedicated to Shiva and is one of the oldest temples in Bhubaneswar, Odisha.

• The Lingaraja temple is the largest temple in Bhubaneswar.
• The central tower of the temple is 180 ft (55 m) tall. The temple represents the quintessence of the Kalinga architecture and culminating the medieval stages of the architectural tradition at Bhubaneswar.
• The temple is believed to be built by the kings from the Somavamsi dynasty, with later additions from the Ganga rulers.
• The temple is built in the Deula style that has four components namely, vimana (structure containing the sanctum), jagamohana (assembly hall), natamandira (festival hall) and bhoga-mandapa (hall of offerings), each increasing in the height to its predecessor.

• The temple complex has 50 other shrines and is enclosed by a large compound wall.
• The central deity of the temple, Lingaraja, is worshipped both as Shiva and Vishnu. The harmony between the two sects of Hinduism, Shaivism, and Vaishnavism, is seen in this temple where the deity is worshipped as Harihara, a combined form of Vishnu and Shiva.

Destruction of Lingaraj temple

• The controversy over the destruction of ancient monuments around the 11th century Lingaraj Temple in Odisha’s capital Bhubaneswar amid a State-sponsored redevelopment drive, spiralled with the Indian National Trust for Art and Cultural Heritage (INTACH) stating that irreparable damage had been done to the temple and ancient shrines around it.
• The Odisha government’s Ekamra Kshetra beautification project is aimed at creating space adjoining the Lingaraj Temple to accommodate around two lakh devotees expected to visit the temple for the festival of Shivaratri in March.
• The space in front of the ancient temple can now barely accommodate 10,000 to 15,000 devotees.
• “We find that no standard guidelines have been followed by the project implementation authorities and excavating teams. Irreparable damage has been done to adjoining ancient shrines,” INTACH’s preliminary investigation says.

NH-66 to be redeveloped as an economic corridor

The centre has proposed to develop NH-66 as an economic corridor in the recent budget announcement.

NH 66

• Runs roughly north-south along the western coast of India

• Connects Panvel (a city south of Mumbai) to Cape Comorin (Kanyakumari),

• Passing through the states of Maharashtra, Goa, Karnataka, Kerala and Tamil Nadu.
• Major cities include Panjim, Mangaluru, Kochi

Ekamra Kshetra Beautification Project

The Orissa government's Ekamra Kshetra beautification project is aimed at creating space around Lingaraj Temple in Bhubaneshwar for the eve of Shivratri in March 2021.

It is a government-led project which has recently been mired in controversy due to the destruction of ancient monuments nearby.

Indian National Trust for Art and Cultural Heritage:

• It is a non-profit charitable organisation registered under the Societies Registration Act, 1860.
• It was founded in 1984 in New Delhi with the vision to spearhead heritage awareness and conservation in India.
• It has pioneered the conservation and preservation of not just our natural and built heritage but intangible heritage as well.
• In 2007, the UN awarded INTACH a special consultative status with the United Nations Economic and Social Council.
• (INTACH) has almost stopped the stone-pelting ritual at Bojjannakonda, a famous Buddhist site at Sankaram, near Visakhapatnam, Andhra Pradesh.
  • Bojjannakonda and Lingalametta are the twin Buddhist monasteries dating back to the 3rd century BC.

Lingaraj Temple

• Lingaraj Temple, built in the 11^th century AD, is dedicated to Lord Shiva and is considered the largest temple in the city of Bhubaneswar.
• It is believed to have been built by the Somvanshi King Yayati I.
• The main tower of this temple measures 180 feet in height.
• It is built in red stone and is a classic example of Kalinga-style architecture.

Interest Rate Growth Differential

"If the interest rate paid by the government is less than the growth rate, then the intertemporal budget constraint facing the government no longer binds."- economist Olivier Blanchard.

• The “intertemporal budget constraint” means that any debt outstanding today must be offset by future primary surpluses.
• If the Interest Rate-Growth Differential (IRGD), the difference between the interest rate and growth rate, becomes negative, the governments need not worry about deficits since the growth would take care of the interest payment obligations. This would ensure the sustainability of public debts.
• The Economic Survey argues that in India, the growth rate is higher than the interest rate most of the time. So the conventional restraints on the fiscal policy may not be the right way ahead given the serious contraction of the Indian economy.
• Washington Consensus - It is a framework that advocates for macroeconomic stability.
  • Macroeconomic stability roughly means that the borrowing done to finance the deficit of a country must be kept to a minimum.
  • This is a concept in peril as the economies of the world look to fight the after-effects of COVID-19 induced slowdown successfully.

Central Reserve Police Force

The Central Reserve Police Force (CRPF) is one of the premier Central Armed Police Forces of India (under the Ministry of Home Affairs) for internal security. The other Central Armed Police Forces are as follows:

• Assam Rifles (AR): The Assam Rifles came into being in 1835, as a militia called the Cachar Levy’.
• Border Security Force (BSF): Responsible for guarding India's land borders with Pakistan and Bangladesh.
• Central Industrial Security Force (CISF): Provides security cover to nuclear installations, space establishments, airports, seaports, power plants, sensitive Government buildings and ever heritage monuments.
• Indo Tibetan Border Police (ITBP): ITBP is a specialized mountain force and most of the officers and men are professionally trained mountaineers and skiers.
• National Security Guard (NSG): The National Security Guard (NSG) is a counter terrorism unit which was raised in 1984, following Operation Blue Star.
• Sashastra Seema Bal (SSB): Earlier Special Service Bureau was raised in 1960s with the sole objective of achieving ‘Total security preparedness’ in the remote border areas for performing a ‘stay-behind’ role in the event of a war.

History: Originally constituted as the Crown Representative Police in 1939, it is one of the oldest Central paramilitary forces. After Independence, the force was renamed as Central Reserve Police Force by an Act of Parliament on December 28, 1949.

• Duties performed by the CRPF include:
  • Crowd/ Riot control
  • Counter Militancy/Insurgency operations
  • Dealing with Left Wing Extremism
    • CoBRA (Commando Battalion for Resolute Action) unit in Chattisgarh
    • Jaguar unit in Jharkhand
    • Greyhound unit in Andhra Pradesh
  • Protection of VIPs and vital installations
  • Checking environmental degradation and protection of local Flora and Fauna
  • Fighting aggression during Wartime
  • Participating in UN Peacekeeping Missions
  • Rescue and Relief operations at the time of Natural Calamities

East Container Terminal

Sri Lanka has withdrawn its proposal to let India & Japan build its East Terminal Container near the capital city of Colombo.

What is the Project?

• The tripartite agreement, signed by India, Sri Lanka and Japan, proposes to develop the ECT, which is located at the newly expanded southern part of the Colombo Port.
• The ECT is located 3 km away from the China-backed international financial city, known as Port City, currently being built in Colombo.
• A Chinese company behind the controversial 2018 Hambantota port project, signed its first contract in the Port City last month.
• It is also on the map of China’s Belt and Road Initiative (BRI).

Jal Jeevan Mission (Urban) 2.0 to revive urban water bodies

The urban water supply mission under the Jal Jeevan Mission announced in the Budget would include rejuvenation of water bodies as well as 20% of supply from reused water.

Jal Jeevan Mission

• Jal Jeevan Mission, a central government initiative under the Ministry of Jal Shakti, aims to ensure access of piped water for every household in India.

• The mission’s goal is to provide to all households in rural India safe and adequate water through individual household tap connections by 2024.

• The Har Ghar Nal Se Jal programme was announced by FM in Budget 2019-20 speech.

• This programme forms a crucial part of the Jal Jeevan Mission.

• The programme aims to implement source sustainability measures as mandatory elements, such as recharge and reuse through greywater management, water conservation, and rainwater harvesting.

The urban component of the mission:

• The mission is meant to create a people’s movement for water, making it everyone’s priority.

• There is an estimated gap of 2.68 crore urban household tap connections that the Mission would seek to bridge in all 4,378 statutory towns.

• The Mission would also aim to bridge the gap of 2.64 crore sewer connections in the 500 cities under the existing AMRUT scheme.

• The mission would include the rejuvenation of water bodies to boost the sustainable freshwater supply and the creation of green spaces.