Bihar promotes Jain circuit

Bihar promotes Jain circuit
Kumar Manish

AHMEDABAD: Pilgrimage tourism always tops the Jain mind. No wonder the Bihar government has come up with a Jain circuit to woo the community in the state.

It was in Bihar that Jainism, which has millions of followers today, was first propagated, according to officials. The chief proponent of Jain religion and 24th tirthankar, Lord Mahavir, was born near Patna, capital of Bihar.

The most revered Jain pilgrim spot in Bihar is Jalmandir Temple complex at Pawapuri. Says officer in department of tourism, Bihar government, Tapan Kumar Sinha, "Bihar Tourism has designed the religious circuit in a holistic manner. There are more than seven important places in Bihar which are famous for Jain temples and are of historical significance to Jains."

The prominent Jain spots are Vasokund, believed to be the birthplace of Lord Mahavir, Rajgir, Kundalpur, Lachhaur Nalanda, Pawapuri, among others.

"We have been promoting religious tourism in a big way in Gujarat. In the last two days of the travel and tourism fair, we're getting good response from the Gujarati community. We have introduced special package tours for Jains, Buddhists and Sikhs," says Sinha.

This is the first time Bihar Tourism has prominently displayed their tourist destinations with this attractive religious circuit, says visitor Nitin Dalal. "Gujarat has highest concentration of Jain community and the places included in the circuit are of historical importance to it," he adds.

Says another visitor Dinesh Patel, "I'm curious about the tourist destinations in Bihar and places of religious importance there. The state is still to be explored in terms of tourism."

Amartya Sen urges Jain industrialists to invest in Pawapuri

PATNA: Nobel laureate Amartya Sen on Saturday urged industrialists the Jain community to take initiative to develop Pawapuri in Bihar's Nalanda district, where Lord Mahavira, the founder of Jainism, is believed to have attained enlightenment.

"They (Jain industrialists) should invest for its development," Sen told reporters here.

The renowned economist, who visited Pawapuri Friday, said there was a need to set up three-star hotels, an engineering college and other infrastructure for the area's development.

Sen recalled that last time he visited Pawapuri in 2003 when he was part of the delegation of former president A.P.J. Abdul Kalam. Pawapuri is nearly 90 km from Patna.

He is currently in Bihar for a meeting of the mentor group of the proposed Nalanda International University in Nalanda. Sen heads the mentor group.

Thousands of Jains from across the world visit Pawapuri to offer prayers at the site where Mahavira's last rites were performed.

From Economics Times

Pawapuri Ignored by Bihar State Government

Patna, (Bihar Times): After the protest by the Buddhists of Bodh Gaya over the state government advertisement showing 'disrespect' to Gautam Buddha it is now the Jains turn to express their strong displeasure.

The secretary of the Patna Jain Sangh, Pradip Jain, in a letter to the chief minister, Nitish Kumar, complained that though the public relation department of the state government, in its advertisement, showed Bodh Gaya and Patna Saheb Gurdwara it totally ignored Pawapuri or any other Jain shrine notiwithstanding the fact that Jainism had its origin in the state.

Apart from that the Pawapuri Jal Mandir was not included in President Pratibha Patil's itinerary, though last time when the then President Dr A P J Abdul Kalam was in Bihar he visited this temple. This notwithstanding the fact that President Patil visited Nalanda and Rajgir in the vicinity of Pawapuri and Bodh Gaya and Vaishali––all places related to Buddhism––in her two-day visit to the state.

Pradip Jain urged the chief minister to give equal importance to the Jain places of historical and religious importance during the visit of the VIPs and in state government advertisement.