The BJP-led government in Maharashtra has conferred ‘A’ class pilgrimage and tourist destination status for Chaitya Bhoomi at Dadar in Central Mumbai, where Dr. B R Ambedkar was laid to rest.
The proposal in this regard was today approved by Chief Minister Devendra Fadnavis, an official in the Chief Minister’s Office said.
The decision will enable overall development of the memorial, thronged by thousands on the death anniversary of the Dalit icon on December 6, observed as “Mahaparinirvan din”.
The state government had earlier granted the same status to ‘Deekshabhoomi’ in Nagpur where Mr. Ambedkar along with a large number of his followers embraced Buddhism in 1956.
Last month, National Textile Corporation (NTC) had given permission to the government to start construction of the Ambedkar memorial at Indu mill compound, near the Chaitya Bhoomi.
Ambedkar, the chief architect of Indian Constitution and champion of depressed sections, was cremated at Chaitya Bhoomi on his death on December 6, 1956.
