Plans afoot to restore temple at Vrindavan

JAIPUR: After 'restoring' Brahma Kund recently, the Braj Foundation have now embarked on reviving the Radha Madhav temple in Vrindavan. The historic
temple is a property of Rajasthan government.
According to Vineet Narayan, CEO of the foundation, initial talks for this have been held with the state government. "Having seen our record of restoring heritage temples, forests and even the Yamuna the state government has evinced interest in our offer of restoring the Radha Madhav temple. The state wants the temple to be restored in a public-private partnership model," Narayan said.
The foundation is responsible for the restoration of large parts of the Braj Chourasi Kos, including the Koile Ghat in Mathura, and the Gahvarvan in Barsana. The foundation has recently prepared a Rs 2,000-crore tourism plan for Braj for the UP government.
The Radha Madhav temple is said to have been built by Jayadeva 900 years ago, making it one of the oldest temple in Vrindavana. But years of neglect has left its impact. Not only is it in a dilapidated condition but most parts of the temple have also been encroached. The possession of the temple now lies with the devasthan department of Rajasthan.
"We want to develop the temple in such a way so that it not only becomes a brand for Rajasthan but also attracts tourists of the Kama-Deeg area. In the proposed PPP model, we will be able to generate revenue not only for this temple but also for restoring other temples with the devasthan department," he said.
The foundation will submit the proposal to the state government soon and hopes to finish the work in a year. "A lot of landscaping, construction and beautification work will be needed," Narayan said.