After the Ram temple in Ayodhya, plans are afoot to make a “grand temple” for Sita in Sitamarhi district in north Bihar, considered to be her place of birth. The Bihar government has decided, in principle, to acquire 50 acres around an existing temple in Sitamarhi to construct a new temple. The decision was taken at Friday’s meeting of the Bihar Cabinet. “Sitamarhi is to Sita what Ayodhya is to Ram. It is a holy land for Hindus. People from all over the world will now come to worship at the Ram temple in Ayodhya, and they would like to visit Sita’s birthplace as well. Our contention is that a grand temple for Sita, befitting her stature, should be built in Sitamarhi,” said Kameshwar Chaupal, a former MLC in Bihar, and a BJP member who is one of the prime movers of the idea. “There is a temple in Sitamarhi that was built about 100 years ago, but it is not in very good condition. Our proposal has been to build a new temple that is as grand as the Ram temple in Ayodhya,” said Chaupal, the person who had placed the first brick during the Shilanyas, or foundation laying ceremony, of the Ram temple in Ayodhya in 1989. He is also a trustee of the Ayodhya Temple Trust. The acquisition of 50 acres would be over and above the 16.63 acres that the Bihar government had acquired earlier for redevelopment of the area around the existing temple premises. The construction of the temple would have to be done by a public trust, just like in the case of Ram Temple, with money raised by it. “The government cannot build a temple. But there have been demands from several quarters that a grand temple should be built here. The government is acquiring the land to make that possible,” said Dr S Siddharth, Principal Secretary to Bihar Chief Minister Nitish Kumar. “When the temple comes up, the area would need to cater to a large number of pilgrims. Facilities like hotels and public conveniences would need to be created. The decision to acquire land has been made keeping in mind the needs of future development in the area. We are foreseeing greater interest in this place following the construction of Ram temple. It has the potential to develop into a Tirupati-like site, and we want to make sure that adequate space is available for that kind of development,” Siddharth said. Sitamarhi is part of the Ramayana Circuit, a set of 15 important places mentioned in the Ramayana, that has been identified by the Central government for development in a bid to boost religious tourism. Although demands for a new temple have been around for a long time, these have gained in strength since the construction of temple in Ayodhya began a few years ago. The Bihar government had approved a redevelopment project in the area and sanctioned Rs 72 crore for it earlier this year. The decision to go in for land acquisition came just two days after a meeting of devotees with Siddharth and other Bihar government officials. “This is a historic decision by the Nitish Kumar government in Bihar. The Chief Minister took a personal interest in this issue that is very close to the sentiments of the people in the area and outside. The state government decision paves the way for the construction of a temple that can match the Ram temple in Ayodhya,” said Amrendra Singh, a Supreme Court advocate who is part of the group making efforts for a new temple. Chaupal said the details of the proposed temple were still to be worked out. “It is early days right now. The Bihar government has taken a very important decision by ensuring that land is made available. Now it is for people like us, the trust that runs the existing temple, and other interested people to take this forward. We are driven by the desire to make Sitamarhi, and this proposed new temple, an important pilgrimage site in the coming years,” he said.
