Kota (Rajasthan), Oct 4 (PTI) The foundation stone of the cenotaph of Rao Surajmal Hada, the ninth king of the erstwhile Bundi princely state, was laid here on Friday for the reconstruction of the 600-year-old monument that was demolished last month to make way for building a greenfield airport.
The demolition of the monument in Tulsi village of Bundi district by the Kota Development Authority (KDA) had sparked anger among the Rajputs.
According to an official release, the consensus for the reconstruction of the monument was reached at a meeting chaired by Lok Sabha Speaker and local MP Om Birla on Thursday. It was attended by officials from KDA, Airport Authority of India, Former MP and member of the Kota royal family Ijyaraj Singh, Vanshvardhan Singh of the Bundi royal family, Brigadier (retd) Bhupesh Singh Hada, Akshaya Hada and representatives from the Rajput community.
The foundation stone laying ceremony on Friday was held at the same location where the original cenotaph stood. Ijyaraj Singh, Vanshvardhan Singh, Brigadier (retd) Bhupesh Singh Hada, Akshaya Hada and prominent members of the Rajput community took part in the rituals.
During Thursday's meeting, Birla spoke to Rajasthan Chief Minister Bhajanlal Sharma over the phone and informed him about the sentiments of the community associated with the cenotaph, the release from the Kota district administration stated.
It added that the chief minister agreed to the proposal and instructed the KDA to expeditiously complete the reconstruction of the cenotaph. Kota DM Ravindra Goswami, who was also present in the meeting, holds the additional charge of KDA chairman.
The meeting also decided that a committee, headed by Ijyaraj Singh, would be set up to coordinate with the Airport Authority on all matters about the reconstruction and design of the cenotaph.
Vanshvardhan Singh expressed satisfaction with the consensus reached at the meeting. Akshaya Hada said public sentiments associated with the historic cenotaph have got the desired respect.
Hada was the first to object to the demolition of the cenotaph and had led the stir over the issue.