HM Amit Shah to lay foundation stone for 81-foot Shiva statue in Gujarat today

Ahmedabad: Union Home and Cooperation Minister Amit Shah will lay the foundation stone for an 81-foot-tall statue of Lord Shiva at the Shaktipeeth Shri Varadayini Mataji Temple in Rupal area of Gandhinagar on Friday as part of a series of programmes in Gujarat.

HM Shah's engagements span religious visits in Ahmedabad and Gandhinagar, an evening aarti in Mansa, and a Raas Garba programme in Kolvada, government officials said.

According to his itinerary, the Union Home Minister will first visit Gachchhadhipati Param Pujya Nar Ratna Surishwar Ji Maharaj at Prerna Tirth in Ahmedabad's Satellite area at 2:45 p.m.

He will then meet Gachchhadhipati Param Pujya Udayprabha Surishwar Ji Maharaj at Shri Vishwa Jain Sangh in Paldi at 3:15 p.m.

The foundation-laying ceremony for the proposed 81-foot statue of Lord Shiva is scheduled for 6 p.m. at the Shaktipeeth Shri Varadayini Mataji Temple in Gandhinagar's Rupal.

HM Shah will also offer prayers at the temple complex.

The programme will then move to Mansa, where the Union Minister is scheduled to attend the aarti at Bahuchar Mata Temple at 7:30 p.m.

His final engagement is a Raas Garba programme organised by Navratri Yuvak Mandal at Shri Ramji Temple in Navratri Chowk in Kolwada scheduled for 9:30 p.m.

The itinerary places religious engagements across Ahmedabad and Gandhinagar before the Union Minister attends the evening programmes in Mansa and Kolwada.

The visit comes during the Navratri period, when religious gatherings and traditional garba events are held across Gujarat.

The scheduled programmes include visits to Jain religious leaders, prayers at Hindu temples and participation in a traditional cultural event.

HM Shah last visited Gujarat on September 27, when he inaugurated and launched railway development projects worth Rs 1,472 crore at Sabarmati railway station in Ahmedabad, alongside Chief Minister Bhupendra Patel.

He flagged off the country's first liquefied natural gas (LNG)-powered train and inaugurated a WAG-12 locomotive maintenance shed.

He also inaugurated railway infrastructure works, including automatic signalling systems, and launched the deployment of the indigenous Kavach train protection system on selected routes.

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