The formal beginning of the construction of the mosque in Ayodhya, in Uttar Pradesh, will be marked with a tree sapling plantation drive and raising of the national flag. The Indo-Islamic Cultural Foundation (IICF) trust, which is responsible for the construction of the mosque, said the ceremony to mark the beginning of the project will be held on 26 January.
NDTV reported that the nine trustees of the foundation held a meeting on Sunday, 17 January, to discuss the programme. In the meeting, other issues such as the delay in getting clearances from the Income Tax Department and those for receiving foreign contributions were discussed.
A new release from IICF, following the meeting, read that the tree plantation drive is aimed at creating awareness about climate change as a major challenge to humanity.
"As envisaged in the project, a green area will be developed to have plants from all over the world, from Amazon rainforest to areas having bushfires in Australia, and from all different geographical regions of India to create awareness for the imminent threat of climate change," it said.
On 19 December, the trust had released the blueprint of the mosque and other structures designed by Professor SM Akhtar, a Lucknow based architect-cum-town-planner, whom the trust has hired to design the mosque that would come up in Dhannipur.
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