Chhattisgarh: The Chhattisgarh government announced that places on Ram Van Gaman Path, a route taken by Lord Ram during his 14-year exile, will be developed as tourist destinations.

The decision was taken during a Cabinet meeting chaired by chief minister Bhupesh Baghel here on Thursday, a government public relation official said.

As per research, Lord Ram had travelled through at least 75 places in Chhattisgarh during his exile from Ayodhya, and of these, he is believed to have stayed at 51 locations for some time, the official said.

In the first phase, eight places that fall on forested routes will be developed as tourist spots, he said.

These include Sitamadi-Harchaika in Koriya district, Ramgarh in Sarguja district, Shivrinarayan in Janjgir-Champa district, Turturiya of Balodabazar-Bhatapara district, Chandkhuri of Raipur district, Rajim of Gariaband district, Sihava (Sapt Rishi Ashram) in Dhamtari district, and Jagdalpur in Bastar district, he said.

A four-member team will be constituted to survey these eight proposed spots and work on development of facilities such as approach road, signages, tourist facility centre, vedic village, water supply, toilets, restaurants, electricity, etc, he said.

The project will start off at Mata Kaushalya Mandir at Chandkhuri village of Aarang tehsil in Raipur district.

The state government will soon allocate a budget for the project and may even seek financial assistance from the Union tourism ministry, he added.                                          

With PTI Inputs