Similarly, to celebrate the birth centenary of Pandit Deendayal Upadhyaya, an RSS ideologue, the government has allocated another Rs 100 crore. Of the total amount, Rs 80 crore will be spent on creating a permanent structure in the name of Upadhyaya while Rs 20 crore will be spent on various functions in Delhi and other states.
The other icons are Shehnai maestro Bismillah Khan, Carnatic vocalist M S Subbulakshmi, disciple of the 19th century mystic Ramakrishna Paramhans and founder of Ramkrishna Math, Swami Abhedanand, Hindi writer Amrit Lal Nagar and former Odisha Chief Minister Biju Patnaik.
The final proposal and programme will be taken up for discussion by Home Minister Rajnath Singh in the National Implementation Committee meeting in August. The government will build two stadiums and two auditoriums for cultural events in the name of Singhji and Upadhyay that will cost Rs 16 crore. The locations for these facilities are likely to be finalised during Rajnath’s meeting. However, the Ministry of Culture said the facilities could be created at the birth place of the icons or any other place significantly associated with them.
There will be 10 solar power installations in hostels and hospitals each in the name of Singhji and Upadhyay, which will cost Rs 20 crore. There will be four new parks in their honour too, costing Rs 2 crore.
The government will also build four state-of-the-art night shelters honouring Singhji and Upadhyay, each at a cost of Rs 1 crore.
