Karkala, Dec 3: The State Government has sanctioned Rs 15 crore to make arrangements for the forthcoming Bahubali Maha-Masthakabhisheka at Karkala in the district, said Vinay Kumar Sorake, minister for urban development, Karnataka.
The ceremony will be held from January 21 to 31, 2015. Maha-Masthakaabhisheka or sacred bathing of the statue with saffron paste, milk and water, held in every 12 years at Karkala. During this period thousands of Jain devotees visit this place to carry out the Maha-Mastakabhisheka.
Speaking at a preparatory meeting of the various coordination committees here Mr Sorake, the minister said Rs 13.65 crore has been earmarked for providing facilities to the devotees from different parts of the country.
He directed the officials to complete the construction within the time frame. Around one lakh devotees are expected to take part in the Masthakabhisheka, he said.
Deputy Commissioner R Vishal said all the works should be completed by January 15. Sanitation, safety, water supply and health would be given priority. He said all details should be uploaded on Udupi tourism website which would be linked to the government website.
A 24-hour central control room would be set up with two emergency contact numbers. The signboards should also display the emergency contact numbers. Medicines worth Rs five lakh would be kept ready.
Karkala's 42 feet monolithic statue of Bahubali the Gomateshwara, the son of the first Jain Tirthankar, believed to have been built around 1432 AD. This is a male figure in a naked posture approached by a number of rock-cut steps. Bahubali, a local prince who trounced his brother in a war to win the kingdom, renounced worldly pleasures of life and spent 12 years in meditation, by what time climbers grew all over and around him. Veerapandya Bhairava Raja built this monolithic statue in his honor. This statue is the second tallest in the State.
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