Odisha CM Mohan Charan Majhi announces the renaming of Kandhamal Medical College after Swami Laxmanananda Saraswati and ₹13 crore for Jalespata Ashram
OdishaPlus Bureau
Odisha Chief Minister Mohan Charan Majhi on Monday announced that the Government Medical College and Hospital in Kandhamal district will be renamed after Swami Laxmanananda Saraswati, the late Swami Laxmanananda Saraswati, in recognition of his contribution to tribal welfare and education.
Making the announcement, the Chief Minister said the medical college at Phulbani would bear Saraswati’s name as a tribute to his decades-long work among tribal communities in Kandhamal.
Majhi also announced financial assistance of ₹13 crore from the Chief Minister’s Special Assistance Fund for the development of the Jalespata Ashram, its educational institutions and associated infrastructure.
According to the announcement, ₹5 crore will be spent on constructing a 300-seat girls’ hostel, while ₹3 crore has been earmarked for the preservation and development of the ashram as a heritage site. Another ₹60 lakh will be used for a river-lift water supply project catering to the ashram, school and hostel. The remaining funds will finance construction of classrooms, hostel buildings, toilets, boundary walls and renovation of existing facilities.
The Chief Minister said the initiatives were aimed at preserving the historical and cultural importance of the Jalespata Ashram while strengthening educational infrastructure in the tribal-dominated district.
Swami Laxmanananda Saraswati, a senior leader of the Vishwa Hindu Parishad, spent several decades working among tribal communities in Kandhamal through educational and social initiatives.
He was assassinated on August 23, 2008, when armed assailants stormed the Jalespata Ashram and opened fire, killing him and four associates.
His killing triggered large-scale communal violence across Kandhamal. The violence claimed at least 39 lives, damaged or destroyed hundreds of churches and led to the registration of around 800 criminal cases, making it one of the most significant episodes of communal unrest in Odisha’s recent history.