Buddha Park set to open in Ilam

By Prem Adhikari,Pashupatinagar (Ilam), April. 1: A newly built Buddha Park featuring a 65-foot-tall statue of Buddha in Suryodaya Municipality-3, Baudhdham, Ilam, is set to come into operation.

Chief Minister Hikmat Kumar Karki will inaugurate the park on April 1, which has been constructed with joint investment from the Koshi Province Government and Suryodaya Municipality.

According to the Gautam Buddha Memorial Foundation, the inauguration ceremony will include a pran pratishtha (ritual consecration) of the Buddha statue.

The ritual will be conducted by Buddhist spiritual leader Khenchen Namdol Chhiring Rinpoche and other religious figures from 6:00 am to 12:00 noon on the same day.

Spread across 17 ropani of land, the park is expected to become a major attraction for tourists.

Located about two kilometres from Pashupatinagar along the Nepal-India border, Baudhdham has already been drawing a growing number of Indian visitors.

Local tourism entrepreneur Bimal Dewan said the site is increasingly becoming a first stop for tourists travelling to Darjeeling, a popular hill destination in India.

The construction of the Buddha Park began in the fiscal year 2015/16 with funding from the Mechi Tourism Promotion Development Committee. After Nepal adopted a federal structure, the project was continued and completed with support from the Koshi Province Government and Suryodaya Municipality.

The provincial government has been allocating budget for the project since the fiscal year 2018/19, while the municipality contributed an additional 30 per cent to complete the park, according to Acting Mayor Durga Kumar Baral.

Baral expressed confidence that the park will attract tourists not only from Nepal and India but also from third countries.

A total of Rs. 80 million has been spent on the construction of the park, with contributions from the Koshi Province Government, the Mechi Hill Tourism Development Committee, and Suryodaya Municipality.

Alongside the park, local tourism entrepreneurs have also developed additional infrastructure to support visitors.