Touted as an international event, ‘Deepostav’ at Ayodhya during Diwali has been accorded the status of a state-level function, and the government will now bear the cost of the three-day event. A decision to this effect was taken at the cabinet meeting in Lucknow on Tuesday.
Earlier, UP Tourism department spent funds from its own budget for ‘Deepostav’ at Ayodhya but now, the Yogi government will directly fund the function through district administration.
Briefing mediapersons on Tuesday, state government spokesperson Srikant Sharma said this year, ‘Deepostav’ would be a state government affair while it was organised by Tourism department in the last two years.
“Government has sanctioned a sum of Rs 133 crore for this year’s ‘Deepostav’ and over 5.51 lakh ‘diyas’ will be lighted on October 26,” he said.
By declaring ‘Deepostav’ a state-sponsored programme, the Chief Minister also announced that the funds spent on the event would be audited as per norms.
Meanwhile, the UP government have made elaborate arrangements for ‘Deepostav’ which will be graced by the Chief Minister on October 26. The Speaker of Parliament of the Republic of Fiji is likely to be the chief guest on the occasion.
