Tarakeswar: The famous Tarakeswar temple is being refurbished and cleaned ahead of Prime Minister Narendra Modi‘s visit on June 20, with the shrine’s colour scheme being changed from blue and white to saffron.According to administrative sources, a special team from Nabanna instructed that the temple be painted saffron. The walls around the Dudhpukur pond, where devotees take a holy dip before offering prayers, are also being painted white with saffron highlights.The district administration began cleaning the temple premises on Tuesday. Officials said the work is being carried out on a priority basis in view of the prime minister’s visit.Ministers of state Purnima Chakraborty, MLA from Shyampukur, and Sumana Sarkar visited the temple complex along with local MLA Santu Pan. After offering prayers, they said the prime minister’s visit to Tarakeswar would be a significant moment for the temple and its devotees. They also referred to Syama Prasad Mukherjee’s role in Bengal’s history and said Modi would be the first prime minister to visit the Tarakeswar temple.Former chief minister Mamata Banerjee had visited the temple several times during her tenure and set up the Tarakeswar Development Authority. Funds were released through the authority for infrastructure work, and the earlier blue-and-white colour scheme was introduced during that period.During a previous visit to Tarakeswar, chief minister Suvendu Adhikari had said the new govt would change the temple’s colour scheme, describing saffron as a symbol of spirituality.Dandiswami Sureswar Ashram, head of the Tarakeswar temple authority, welcomed the prime minister’s visit and said the temple body hoped it would help further development of the shrine. He said the temple authority, which once managed all affairs independently, was now facing difficulties, including encroachment on temple land.
