PM didn't want the Ram temple to become temple of the north…(his message was) develop Ayodhya so that it has cosmopolitan features: Nripendra Misra

Indian Express

3 days ago

Since he was picked as the officer-architect-in-chief of the Ram temple in Ayodhya, Nripendra Misra has made 120 trips to the town for work. In an interview with The Indian Express two days after the consecration of the statue of Ram as the king of Ayodhya, Misra, who served as the Principal Secretary to Prime Minister Narendra Modi in his entire first term, reflects on his learnings in the past five years. Excerpts:
Since you were appointed the chairman of the Ram temple's Construction Committee in February 2020, Ayodhya must have dominated your calendar?
Soon after my appointment, Covid was around the corner, and a national lockdown was ordered. I waited for about three months before starting my journey by car from Delhi to Ayodhya. It takes about nine hours. I arrived here with the two agreements — with L&T and Tata Consulting Engineers. Over the last five years, I have made about 120 trips to Ayodhya. And, each trip is a minimum of three days. I calculated that it is more than 365 days. More than a year of my life has been spent staying in the Circuit House in one room. Fortunately, they never changed that room. My day starts at 9 am and ends in the evening.
The seven new temples that have been built now…how do they relate to the Ram temple?
The seven new temples belong to Valmiki, Vishwamitra, Agastya, Vashistha, Nishadraj, Ahilya and Shabari. They were some of the key persons involved in Ram's life journey, especially his growing up to be a maryada purushottam. These seven temples encapsulate the message that the Prime Minister is keen to spread — of social cohesion, and a feeling that Ram belongs to everyone.
After the consecration or Pran Pratistha in January 2024, what has been the Prime Minister's message to you for the last year or so?
Whenever I have met the prime minister, not very frequently, but yes, whenever he is kind enough… at the temple, he wanted to understand the process, engineering. Because of his own experiences in Gujarat, having done the Sardar Patel statue, he was very familiar.
When I went for the first time, the controversy was at its peak about what kind of foundation and technology we should adopt because of the soil condition being close to the river and also close to Nepal earthquake features… So, that was the anxiety there. The moment I shared it with him, he expected this and said, 'Yes, yes, that is the most important aspiration of sadhus… the temple should last a thousand years.'
The moment I landed here, 'thousand years' was ringing in my ears. So, I explained to him that we did the soil foundation, (which) he was familiar with completely…
So, these were the kind of details he was willing to listen to and give his best advice. And, a kind of relationship developed. Once this (temple) got completed, he was very concerned about ensuring people come from all directions of India and abroad – North, South, East, West. He was very worried that this temple should not become a temple of the North.
So, every time he inquired about the number of devotees coming, the expected ratio, the proportion of people coming from the South. He felt at one stage that people who come from the South should not only accept it, but they should feel homely (at home). Please develop Ayodhya in a manner that it has cosmopolitan features. His other concern was the youth. He kept on repeating that the youth will ask what Ayodhya is and who Lord Rama is. He wanted them to know the cultural heritage of this country.
So, many people say that Prime Minister Modi is the kind of prime minister who has revived the cultural heritage and wealth of this nation. This (the Ram temple in Ayodhya), according to him, was the central point around which we could then weave the other structures. Be it Kedarnath, be it Shiva temple in Madhya Pradesh, be it Ram temple somewhere in Maharashtra or Rameshwaram in South. The cultural revival, not in the conservative sense, but in the sense of an entire thought process.
For the temple movement, led by the BJP, Ayodhya was a cause for correcting a historical wrong. Do you think a reconciliation has been achieved?
The message I was given by the prime minister was there should be nothing negative about what happened. There are inscriptions in front of the temple in Hindi and English. Nowhere have we used the name that such and such person came and he destroyed the temple. It is mentioned, of course, that the temple got destroyed, then the aandolan and finally culmination in the Supreme Court judgement, and its acceptance at the national level.
The PM's message was, please do not discuss negative thoughts. He kept mentioning that if you make that a prominent message, the younger generation would feel small. He did not want the younger generation to suffer from these temporary shocks that Sanatan Dharma faced. The younger generation should know how we have regained and conserved.
You have been in the government for long – as a DM, a telecom regulator, and then in the Prime Minister's office. Having seen politics, economy and society from a vantage position, how do you interpret the post-temple mood among those who were part of the movement? Do you see them moving forward or do you see multiple claims still coming for temples to be built in different places?
I place this responsibility not so much on the government. It will have to be of various social groups, representatives, elected or not elected – they must recognise. They have limits on correcting issues. We all know that the time which has gone does not come back. We do not keep it in our clutches. Once they realise that the time has gone by and once they realise the dream of the future while living in the present, then the society will be more positive, and will look towards the issues of development.
After all, there is another agenda. You and I are worried. There is 7% growth. Will I maintain it? I am going to be the third country in terms of economic power very soon. Why can't I become number 2 or 1? China is always in our memory – that they are far ahead of us. If these are the challenges, we weaken society by disintegration. We should rather strengthen the society to divert this energy to development… Social leaders of my country have a great responsibility.
In size, India would probably replace Japan as the fourth-largest economy… From the economic point of view, what should be the focus?
…we may have crossed (Japan) but they don't have so many poor, they don't have problems with proper nourishment. They don't have problems with education and health. I may say that I produce maximum milk, but does everyone take milk? The answer is no. So, my target should not be that I am maximum (at these parameters). My target should be, am I giving each individual the gains of my growth? I put health, wellness, hospitals at number 1, education at number 2, and third and most important is empowering the rural women. My agenda will be to achieve these goals.
The inclusivity of the Ayodhya project is reflected in what you said. But we also see Sambhal (the row over Jama Masjid there) coming up…
It's a problem. It's very special, deeper. Certain issues are in some manner localised. I always say the judgment on Ram temple was accepted by all only because it was by the Supreme Court. Everything got normalised. Everyone was then following daily routines. We can not seek justice for the past. It has to be forgotten.
The temple construction is almost over. You are also the Chairperson of the Prime Ministers Museum and Library. What role do you visualise for yourself over the next few years?
I am speaking about this for the first time. I have started thinking how long and how much. Perhaps, I will have to set the path, that I am useful up to this point, and beyond that I must divert my energies somewhere else. I am there in the Sangrahalaya. That assignment is with me. I will have to find some kind of constructive work to devote my time after six months or so.
Do you see the Ayodhya city growing in terms of prosperity, too, alongside the rise in tourism?
When I first came from Lucknow, Ayodhya was not even the size of a tehsil town. While we were seeing this battle in the courts and in other places, the local inhabitants belonging to different communities grabbed it (the opportunity)… A person earning Rs 500 is earning Rs 1,000 today. With that, of course, economic exploitation will come. People are encroaching on land. Speculation of land price is at its peak because the investments are coming, and the investment people want to maximise gains. At this stage, a planned growth is required.
The temple pulls devotees and tourists. Do you think there should be more to make them stay in Ayodhya, since people come here but leave by evening?
Yes. This should not become Agra. People stay in Delhi, come to Agra, and return. There is nothing else in Agra except the Taj Mahal. That was one agenda in my mind. Outside the premises of Ram temple, the social-cultural site has to be found. So, people spend a day or two more in Ayodhya. We must build 5-stars, community halls, and there have to be a lot more cultural presentations.
P. Vaidyanathan Iyer is The Indian Express's Managing Editor, and leads the newspaper's reporting across the country. He writes on India's political economy, and works closely with reporters exploring investigation in subjects where business and politics intersect.
He was earlier the Resident Editor in Mumbai driving Maharashtra's political and government coverage. He joined the newspaper in April 2008 as its National Business Editor in Delhi, reporting and leading the economy and policy coverage.
He has won several accolades including the Ramnath Goenka Excellence in Journalism Award twice, the KC Kulish Award of Merit, and the Prem Bhatia Award for Political Reporting and Analysis. A member of the Pulitzer-winning International Consortium of Investigative Journalists (ICIJ), Vaidyanathan worked on several projects investigating offshore tax havens.
He co-authored Panama Papers: The Untold India Story of the Trailblazing Offshore Investigation, published by Penguin.
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