The Haryana government would soon start the excavation of the mythical Saraswati river from Adi Badri, the point from where it is said to have originated.
Chief Minister Manohar Lal Khattar on Monday said his government would ensure development of Adi Badri Heritage Board to increase the importance of the site.
At a public meeting in Yamunanagar district, he announced the start of the excavation, among the biggest projects to be undertaken in the area.
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Since assuming office last October, the BJP government has worked to preserve and promote Hindu cultural sites.
Earlier in February, the Forest Department started work on bringing the Saraswati to the surface by >creating a stream at its point of origin at Saraswati Udgam Sthal at the foothills of the Shivaliks in the Adi Badri area.
Department officials visited the Udgam Sthal and surrounding areas to find ways to create a water channel that would retrace the path of the river which is believed to have flowed all the way to Allahabad.
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Forest Department official Randhir Kumar said that to create a stream, water would be collected from sources in and around the Udgam Sthal. “We will take the water from the stream that originates here, the water from a drain which flows nearby and from two-three tubewells that would be sunk at spots along the route of the ancient river.”
According to Hindu mythology, an underground stream of the Saraswati still flows. It has been claimed that satellite imagery has proved the existence of such an underground stream.