Team News Riveting
New Delhi, March 28
Chennai’s Guru Prasad seems to be cherishing the Mann Ki Baat of Prime Minister Narendra Modi, who envisages lighthouses as a new potential for the tourism industry in the country.
“Naturally, so many programmes keep happening, so many things get said, how does one remember all and how does one pay attention either… naturally! But I felt nice that Guru Prasad ji carried forward one of my requests with interest,” Modi said while delivering his speech in the 75th episode of Mann Ki Baat today.
At this summit, he had talked of developing tourism facilities around the lighthouse complexes in the country. Guru Prasad has shared experiences of his travel in 2019 to two lighthouses- Chennai light house and Mahabalipuram lighthouse. He has shared very interesting facts which will astonish even the listeners of ‘Man kiBaat’, the Prime Minister said.
For example, Chennai lighthouse is one of those select lighthouses of the world which have elevators. Not only this, it is also the only light house in India which is within the city limits. It has solar panels too for electricity. Guru Prasad also talked about the heritage Museum of the light house, which brings forth the history of marine navigation. Giant wicks of oil lamps, kerosene lights, petroleum vapour, and electric lamps that were used in olden times are exhibited at the museum.
Modi added that Guru Prasad has also written in detail about the oldest lighthouse of India- Mahabalipuram lighthouse. He says that beside this light house there is the ‘Ulkaneshwar’ temple built hundreds of years ago by Pallava king MahendraVarman First.
“Friends, I have talked of different aspects of tourism several times during ‘Man kiBaat’, but these lighthouses are unique in terms of tourism. Because of their grand structures lighthouses have always been centres of attraction for people. To promote tourism 71 lighthouses have been identified in India too,” Modi said.
In all these lighthouses, depending on their capacities, museums, amphi-theatres, open air theatres, cafeterias, children’s parks, eco- friendly cottages and landscaping would be built. “By the way, as we are talking of lighthouses, I would also like to tell you about a unique light house. This lighthouse is at a place called Jinjhuwada in Surendra Nagar district of Gujarat. Do you know why this light house is special? It is special, because now the sea coast is more than a hundred kilometers away from where this light house is. You will find such stones too in this village which tell us that there must have been a busy harbour here in the past,” the Prime Minister said.
That means, earlier the coastline was up to Jinjhuwada. Advancing, receding, moving back, retreating so far away from the sea is also a feature of it.
