With the UP elections drawing close, there seems to be a race for making capital out of holy Ayodhya. Culture Minister, Mahesh Sharma whose notions of culture remain stagnant with the samhita wishes to oversee preparations for a modern Ramayana museum which is designed to be an elaborate cultural project costing Rs 225 crore. In 1992 when the Babri mosque was demolished, the Congress government committed itself to restoring it. But with the rise of Hindutva the commitment turned into a demand for restoration of the Ram temple. Pragmatism has prompted the BJP to remove the demand from its agenda for the present, though Uma Bharti and Vinay Katiyar have not given up yet. Now the proposal is to build a museum and a Ramayana, Krishna and Buddhist tourist circuit. What is interesting is that UP Chief Minister Akhilesh Yadav has also swung into action selecting a 25 crore plot for the museum. Son of Mulayam Singh Yadav who once shot down Kar Sevaks for their vandalism on top of the Babri mosque, appears to be overly interested in the Ram mythology. The competition is geared to a laudable objective, turning Ayodhya into a tourist hub. Tourism earnings have doubtless dwindled because of the trumpeting of Hindutva.
The Samajwadi party government in Lucknow has invested lots of money in the restoration of existing monuments such as the international Ramlila Centre for instance. The Ram Katha Museum is also being done up. Ayodhya attracts over 1 crore domestic pilgrims. What is lacking is adequate tourist infrastructure. A thriving tourism in Ayodhya will of course benefit the local population. The focus should be on development and employment. One only wishes the song and dance of Ramlila was kept out of it.