On October 20, 2021, Prime Minister Narendra Modi visited Uttar Pradesh (UP) where he inaugurated the Kushinagar International Airport and participated in an event marking Abhidhamma Day at Mahaparinirvana Temple in Kushinagar. He also attended a public function to inaugurate and lay the foundation stone of various development projects in Kushinagar.
Inauguration of Kushinagar International Airport:
The Ministry of Tourism organized a two days’ conference titled ‘Tourism in Buddhist Circuit- A way forward’ on October 20-21, 2021 at Kushinagar for the inauguration of Kushinagar International Airport by PM Narendra Modi.
- The conference was inaugurated by the Union Minister Gangapuram Kishan Reddy, Ministry of Tourism in the presence of Union Minister Jyotiraditya Scindia, Ministry of Civil Aviation (MoCA), among others.
About Airport:
i.Built at an estimated cost of Rs. 260 crore, Kushinagar international airport will connect the eastern UP with important centres on the Buddhist circuit in India and South-East Asia.
- It will attract thousands of Indian and foreign Buddhists as Gautam Buddha attained Parinirvana in Kushinagar.
- This will encourage the connecting of Buddhist pilgrimage holy sites around the world.
ii.It will be the 3rd international and 9th operational airport to become functional in UP.
iii.The airport will serve nearby districts of Uttar Pradesh and Bihar will also boost investment & employment opportunities.
Inauguration ceremony:
The inauguration was marked by the landing of the inaugural flight at the airport from Colombo, Sri Lanka, carrying a Sri Lankan delegation of over hundred Buddhist Monks & dignitaries including the 12-member Holy Relic entourage bringing the Holy Buddha Relics for Exposition. The delegation also comprises of Anunayakas (deputy heads) of all four Nikatas (orders) of Buddhism in Sri Lanka i.e Asgiriya, Amarapura, Ramanya, Malwatta as well as five ministers of the Government of Sri Lanka led by Cabinet Minister Namal Rajapaksa. There were also diplomats from Vietnam and Singapore.
- Namal Rajapaksa presented a Sinhala-Tamil-English translation of the Bhagavad Gita, commissioned by his father & Sri Lankan Prime Minister Mahinda Rajapaksa to PM Narendra Modi.
PM participates in event marking Abhidhamma Day at the Mahaparinirvana Temple
i.The PM also participated in an event organized to mark Abhidhamma Day which symbolizes the end of three-month rainy retreat – Varshavaas or Vassa for the Buddhist Monks, during which they stay at one place in vihara & monastery and pray.
- The event was also attended by Monks from Sri Lanka, Thailand, Myanmar, South Korea, Nepal, Bhutan and Cambodia, as well as Ambassadors of various countries.
ii.The Indian PM also walked through the exhibition of Paintings of Ajanta frescoes, Buddhist Sutra Calligraphy and Buddhist artefacts excavated from Vadnagar and other sites in Gujarat.
Inauguration & laying of Foundation Stone of 12 development projects
During a public function at Barwa Jangal, Kushinagar, the PM inaugurated & laid the foundation stone of 12 development projects worth over Rs 180 crore.
- He also laid the foundation stone of Rajkiya Medical College, Kushinagar which will be built at a cost of over Rs 280 crore. It will have a 500 bed hospital and provide admissions to 100 students in MBBS (Bachelor of Medicine and Bachelor of Surgery) course in academic session 2022-2023.
Key Points:
i.300 of the proposed 900 airports under the UDAN (Ude Desh ka Aam Nagarik) scheme are already functional.
ii.The state of UP has two more international airports in the pipeline at Jewar and Ayodhya and domestic airports at Aligarh, Azamgarh, Chitrakoot, Moradabad and Shravasti.
iii.Ministry of Tourism undertakes development of infrastructure at tourist destinations across the country under its infrastructure development schemes viz. Swadesh Darshan (SD) and PRASHAD (National Mission on Pilgrimage Rejuvenation and Spiritual, Heritage Augmentation Drive).
iv.In 2020, India extended a grant of USD 15 million to Sri Lanka to strengthen the Buddhist ties between the two nations.
Recent Related News:
PM Narendra Modi laid the foundation stone of Raja Mahendra Pratap Singh State University in Aligarh, Uttar Pradesh. UP will establish the university in the memory of Jat social reformer Raja Mahendra Pratap Singh.
About Sri Lanka:
Capital– Colombo (judicial capital), Sri Jayawardenepura Kotte (legislative capital)
Currency– Sri Lankan Rupee
