Ministry aims to push another religion circuit, holds Mahabharat Circuit conference in Kurukshetra

New Delhi: After working on building the Ramayana and the Krishna circuit in adjoining states, the government is now focusing on building a Mahabharat circuit in Haryana. The ministry of tourism, keen to push out another religion circuit, is developing sites in the state linked to the epic, and has, till now spent over Rs 200 crores in this endeavour.

To this end, the ministry of tourism is holding a three-day event – the Mahabharata Circuit Conference and Familiarisation Tour – in Kurukshetra, inviting over 130 key stakeholders of the industry to showcase the tourist spots, as well as work out ways to boost tourist inflow. Apart from tourist operator associations, bloggers and experts have also been invited. This is the second such event being hosted by the ministry this year.

A government official said that the Centre's focus will now be on this circuit. "We have developed the Ramayana as well as the Krishna circuit, which has been quite well-received. So, this will be our new endeavour, and the Centre's focus will be on this for the next few months," the official said.

Some of the tourist spots that are being developed include the Brahma Sarovar, a revered water body which is believed to be created by Lord Brahma, the Sri Krishna Museum which houses artefacts linked with Lord Krishna, Bhishma Kund, considered the spot where Bhishma lay in the bed of arrows, as well as Jyotisar, which is considered by locals to be the spot where the Bhagavad Gita was delivered.

Apart from that, the Bhadrakali Temple, a temple dedicated to Goddess Durga, the Sthaneshwar Mahadev Temple, which is considered to be one of the 12 Jyotirlingas dedicated to Lord Shiva, Sheikh Chihli’s Tomb, the mausoleum of Sufi saint, and Gurudwana Navi Patshahi Sahib, which was visited by the ninth Sikh Guru Tegh Bahadur, are among the other attractions.

The circuit, in itself, stretches across Uttar Pradesh and Uttarakhand as well. In UP, places like Hastinapur, Kampilya, Echhatra, Barnawa, Mathura, Kaushambhi , Gonda, Lakshagriha were selected to be part of the circuit, while in Uttarakhand, Badrinath, Mana, Pandukeshwar Temple, Lakhamahal, Hanol-Thadiyar, Netwar, Deora, as well as Dodital were selected.

The state Haryana tourism department said that Kuruksetra, the area where the epic battle of Mahabharata is believed to have taken place, is spread over a circuit of about 48 kos, or 147 sq kms. This includes a large number of holy places, temples and sacred tanks connected with the religious events and rituals surrounding the Mahabharat War and linked to the lives and times of the Kurus, considered the ancestors of Kauravas and Pandavas.

The government also believes that Kurukshetra is intimately related to the Aryan civilisation and its growth all along the mythical Saraswati river, which is believed by several modern historians to have disappeared 4,000 years ago, and whose existence, too, has been questioned by many.