Gorakhpur Kalyan Mandapam: Big gift of CM Yogi to Gorakhpur, 8th Kalyan Mandapam built at a cost of ₹ 3.09 crore in Jungle Nakaha is ready.

Another big chapter has been added towards improving the ‘ease of living’ of common citizens in Gorakhpur, which has become the industrial and cultural capital of Eastern Uttar Pradesh. Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath has formally inaugurated and dedicated to the public another state-of-the-art Kalyan Mandapam built by the Gorakhpur Development Authority (GDA) from his MLA fund. This new Kalyan Mandapam has been completely completed in Jungle Nakaha No. 2 under Ward No. 54, Fertilizer Nagar of the city. Built at a cost of approximately Rs 3.09 crore, this community center is no less than a boon for the economically weaker, deprived and middle income group families of the society.

In the era of rapid urbanization in the city and rampant inflation of private banquet halls, it has become a huge financial challenge for a poor father to organize his daughter’s marriage or family auspicious function in a respectable manner. Understanding the pain on the ground, Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath had directed Gorakhpur Municipal Corporation and GDA to set up a series of well-equipped Kalyan Mandapams at the ward level. Under this vision, this center built in Jungle Nakaha will now provide all the facilities to the area residents like an expensive three-star hotel or a luxury marriage lawn at very concessional and nominal rates.

According to GDA Vice President Abhinav Gopal, this Kalyana Mandapam built in Jungle Nakaha No. 2 of Fertilizer Nagar has been designed keeping in mind the modern architecture and future needs. The entire complex is spread over a total of 2,461 square meters of land and its main building is a two-storey building (G+1). In this building, complete arrangements have been made for food, rest and marriage rituals for 300 people simultaneously.

Main architectural features and features of Kalyana Mandapam:

• Grand Central Hall: Large air-conditioned halls have been built on both the ground and first floors, where grand decorations for the stage, wedding procession and cultural stage can be done.

• Kitchen and Pantry: A commercial kitchen equipped with modern chimney, smoke-exhaust system, clean slabs and spacious store room has been prepared to prepare food for more than 300 people in large functions.

• Changing rooms and suites: Secure change rooms and suites with separate attached toilets and dressing areas have been created for the bride and groom’s party.

• toilet block: Separate modern toilet blocks for women and men have been constructed on both the floors following high standards of hygiene.

• Adequate parking space: To avoid traffic jams on the road during weddings, dedicated parking for more than 50 four-wheelers and hundreds of two-wheelers has been created within the premises by installing high quality interlocking tiles.

• Landscape lawn and fountain: A beautiful grassy lawn with greenery has been developed on the outside of the Mandapam, in the middle of which fountains and designer street lights have been installed, which provide an enchanting ambiance to the event at night.

The rents of private marriage halls and banquet lawns have started skyrocketing in the last few years in Gorakhpur metropolis and surrounding areas. Today, one night booking for a normal marriage hall ranges from Rs 1.5 lakh to Rs 3 lakh. Apart from this, huge bills are given separately in the name of electricity, decoration and cleaning. Economically weak labourers, street vendors, farmers or lower-middle-class employee families had to mortgage their land or take loans at huge interest rates for the marriage of their daughter or the tilak of their son.

Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath’s Kalyan Mandapam scheme has directly broken this monopoly of private operators. The daily rent of these Kalyan Mandapams run by GDA is kept 70 to 80 percent less than that of private halls. In this, poor families are provided complete hall, room, kitchen, water, electricity backup and parking only at government fixed fee without any middleman. This is not only saving lakhs of rupees for the families, but they are also becoming safe from getting trapped in the debt trap.

This Kalyan Mandapam inaugurated in Jungle Nakaha No. 2 has become the eighth active center of Gorakhpur. Just before this, on August 29, the Chief Minister had inaugurated the seventh Kalyana Mandapam built at a cost of Rs 3.10 crore in Basharatpur.

Complete list of Kalyan Mandapams inaugurated so far and under construction in Gorakhpur city:

According to GDA officials, Rs 2.5 crore each are being spent on the two mandapams being built in Mahadev Jharkhandi and Semra and these will also be opened to the public by the end of this financial year.

Along with the inauguration of the Kalyan Mandapam, Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath, during his visit to Gorakhpur, also formally inaugurated the newly constructed Charitable Blood Center of the Indian Medical Association (IMA) located in the Planetarium area. This blood bank, established in the IMA building, is equipped with state-of-the-art blood separation technologies (Blood Component Separation Units), platelets apheresis machines and secure cold-chain storage.

Gorakhpur has always been the biggest center of medical treatment for lakhs of patients bordering Eastern Uttar Pradesh, Western Bihar and neighboring country Nepal. Thalassemia, haemophilia, serious road accidents and cancer patients admitted to BRD Medical College and AIIMS Gorakhpur often had to wander for blood and platelets. With the opening of this charitable blood center of IMA, the needy poor patients will be able to get safe and tested blood round the clock on the principle of ‘no-profit, no-loss’.

Gorakhpur Development Authority has made the booking process of Kalyan Mandapam completely transparent and digital, so that common citizens do not fall prey to any middleman:

• Booking from official portal: Citizens can check the availability of their preferred Mandapam and date online by visiting the ‘Kalyan Mandapam Booking’ section of the official website of GDA (gdagorakhpur.in).

• Required Documents: For booking, it is mandatory to upload the applicant’s Aadhar card, age certificate of the bride and groom or invitation letter for auspicious function and residence certificate.

• Priority to local ward residents: Native residents of the ward in which the Kalyana Mandapam is located (e.g. Fertilizer Nagar Ward 54) are given first priority in allotment of dates.

• Security Fund and Refund: A minimum security deposit is deposited along with the booking fee, which is transferred directly back to the applicant’s bank account after the peaceful completion of the event and cleanliness of the premises.

• Rules of cleanliness and discipline: There will be a complete ban on the use of single-use plastic within the premises and playing of loudspeakers will be allowed only within the time limit prescribed by the Noise Pollution Control Board rules.

Wide roads in Gorakhpur, rejuvenation of Ramgarh pond, rehabilitation of AIIMS, fertilizer factory and now this network of Kalyan Mandapams at the ward level have proved that the Yogi government’s development model is not limited only to big infrastructure, but it is also taking full care of the basic happiness and social respect of the person standing at the lowest rung of the society.