Work on the water project will commence within the next six months.
To solve water woes that the devotees might face while visiting Shirdi, the Shirdi Sai Sansthan has decided to undertake a drinking water project worth Rs100 crore. Work on the water project will commence within the next six months and is expected to be completed in the next two years.
Sai Sansthan has decided to approach the state and Central government to seek financial help to complete the water project.
“Last year, nearly 2.5 crore devotees visited the Sai temple. We will be celebrating the centenary of Shirdi Sai Baba in 2018. We anticipate a huge turn-out (more than 7 crore devotees) for the centenary year celebration. It is a wise decision to implement the project now, rather than wait for the next 50 years to face the shortage. We do not want to see our devotees suffering from water shortage,” said a trustee of India’s second richest temple.
According to the proposal, water will be brought from the Nilwande dam which is 80km away from Shirdi. Jayant Sasane, president of Sai Sansthan, said that each year, the number of devotees has been increasing drastically. “We want to complete the project before the residents of Shirdi and Sai devotes start feeling the water shortage. Water is an essential commodity, and without it, we cannot do anything. It is better to plan rather than wait for the problem to occur,” he said.
Elaborating on the project, the trustee said: “It is a big project which is estimated to cost around Rs100 crore. We will seek funding from the state and Central government. If there is any financial gap, it will be filled by trust”.
Besides the water project, there are also plans to construct wider roads, skywalks, lodging facilities, and multi-level car parking.
“We are also planning to develop gardens and facilities for medical treatment. We have even taken appointment with chief minister Prithviraj Chavan on October 10 to discuss all said projects, and the related issues,” he said.
The project work will be carried out by the Shirdi Development Authority (SDA), which has been recently formed by the state government. The body was formulated to improve infrastructure in Shirdi and its adjoining locations. The number of devotees visiting Shirdi each day is increasing.
“It is the responsibility of the government and the trust to provide them with adequate facilities,” he added.
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