The beginning of the project to build a mosque and public utilities at a five-acre plot in Ayodhya district’s Dhannipur village will be marked on Republic Day. The decision was taken on Sunday at an online meeting of the Indo-Islamic Cultural Foundation (IICF) Trust that has been formed by the UP Sunni Waqf Board to oversee the construction of the mosque. The land was granted in accordance with the Supreme Court’s 2019 verdict in the Ram Janmabhoomi case. The Trust’s officials said tree saplings would be planted following the hoisting of the Tricolour at 8.30 am. The members of the trust will attend both the events. At the meeting, “the procedural delay in getting the 12-A/80-G clearances of Income-Tax Act and proceedings for the opening of an FCRA account, among other issues, were also discussed”, said Trust spokesperson and secretary Athar Hussain. He added, “The meeting on Sunday was held under Trust chairman Zufar Farooqi and was attended by all nine members. It was decided to make a formal beginning of the project by applying for plan clearance from Ayodhya District Board and start the soil testing process at the five-acre plot". Hussain said since the focus of the project was to ensure community service with an emphasis on creating awareness about climate change, “it was proposed that the formal start of the project should be by plantation of tree saplings on five-acre land”. The Trust official added, “A green area will be developed at the premises which will have plants from all over the world, including from Amazon rainforest to areas having bushfires in Australia and from all different geographical regions of India to create awareness about the imminent threat of climate change". Apart from the mosque, the IICF is also building a hospital, a museum, a library, a community kitchen, a research centre, and a publishing house on the plot".
