Prime Minister Narendra Modi dedicated the first phase of the ₹856-crore Mahakal Lok corridor in Madhya Pradesh’s Ujjain on Tuesday, after offering prayers at the ancient Mahakaleshwar temple.

Hailing his government’s efforts at renovating and reviving several Hindu temples across the country as well as improving access to Sikh pilgrimage sites, Mr. Modi said that in the Azadi Ka Amrit Mahotsav (75th anniversary of Independence) period, India had given a “call for freedom from the mentality of slavery and taking pride in its heritage”.

“The nation finds glory only when the flag of its success is flying on the world stage. To reach the pinnacle of that success, it is necessary that the nation attains cultural excellence and takes pride in its identity,” Mr. Modi said, mentioning projects such as the Kashi Vishwanath corridor, the Ram temple construction in Ayodhya and initiatives such as opening of the Kartarpur Sahib corridor.

Addressing a gathering at the Kartik Mela Ground, he said such efforts were helping India re-establish the pride associated with these centres of its “spiritual consciousness”, while calling the city of Ujjain “centre of India’s soul”.

Earlier, he unveiled a shivling to dedicate the Mahakal corridor to the nation. Mr. Modi praised Madhya Pradesh Chief Minister Shivraj Singh Chouhan for the successful launch of the project. The first phase of the corridor cost ₹351 crore.

The corridor that is a little over 900 metres long traverses the old Rudrasagar lake, which has been revived as part of the redevelopment project around the Mahakaleshwar Temple, one of the 12 ‘jyotirlingas’. The corridor is dotted with 108 ornate sandstone columns in a row with trishul design on top and mudras of Lord Shiva. It also has fountains surrounded by sculptures and murals on the deity.

(With PTI inputs)