Weeks after the Odisha Cabinet gave the go-ahead to its ‘Ama Odisha Nabin Odisha’ (AONO) programme, under which every panchayat would get ₹50 lakh each to spend on rural infrastructure, a significant portion of the ₹4,000-crore fund placed is likely to end up in temple renovation. While panchayats have proposed to develop cremation grounds, purchase sports kits and repair schools with the money, several proposals submitted with local block offices pertain to upgrading temple kitchens as well as creating dining spaces on temple premises.
Elected representatives of Umadei Brahmapur gram panchayat, 8 km from the State capital Bhubaneswar, did not have to scratch their heads as to how to spend their ₹50 lakh that comes ahead of Assembly and Lok Sabha elections next year: across 11 wards, about 11 temples will receive ₹2.5 lakh each to spruce up their kitchens.
“When it’s about religious sites, opinions align. Half of the windfall, ₹25 lakh, will be towards sprucing up temples. Another ₹5 lakh is marked for development of a Jagannath Temple in the panchayat,” said Ramalata Nayak, the sarpanch.
The ₹50 lakh for Umadei Brahmapur comes on top of nearly ₹20 lakh annually as regular development fund; the gram panchayat has ₹80 lakh in its kitty as unutilised funds.
‘Consensus around temples’
In neighbouring Satyabhamapur panchayat in Khordha district, ₹5 lakh each will be disbursed to two temples for restoration of their kitchen rooms. “The funds can be used for other infrastructure development purposes, but we find consensus on spending only around temple beautification. Moreover, we have decided to spend ₹10 lakh on a CCTV system for the gram panchayat samiti office room,” said Rashmita Bhoi, sarpanch of Satyabhampur.
In Jankoti gram panchayat of coastal Jagatsinghpur district, proposals have been submitted for upgrading two kitchens of temples and construction of dining halls on three temple premises involving a total expenditure of ₹12.5 lakh.
The AONO fund appears to be bonus for panchayats already flush with cash. “In the past, candidates used to give donations for temples in an attempt to win over voters. The common demand people made was either for development of temple or community hall. As opposed to these informal donations, the ₹4,000-crore fund is formal way of keeping voters happy in the run-up to election,” said Rabi Das, a veteran journalist, who termed it an “election fund” placed with [ruling] party workers before the polls.
