The Uttar Pradesh (UP) government is set to laugh all the way to the bank with the Ram Janmabhoomi Mandir boost to the state’s economy. The grand temple is expected to fetch additional revenue to the tune of ₹25,000 crore for the state, according to estimates from SBI Research.
“Given the completion of Ram Mandir in Ayodhya this year and a melange of initiatives taken by the UP government to promote tourism, we believe that the total expenditure by tourists (domestic + foreign) in UP may cross ₹4 lakh crore mark by end of this year helping the state government earn an additional tax revenue of ₹20,000-25,000 crore due to huge spurt in number of tourists during FY25,” said SBI Research in a report titled ‘Where Latin America meets Scandinavia: The Road to Salvation passes through Uttar Pradesh’.
Both the central and the state governments had been in the process of imparting a mega infrastructure facelift to the city ever since the Supreme Court pronounced a verdict in favour of Ram Janmabhoomi Mandir in Ayodhya in 2019. The entire process was expedited after the foundation stone laying for a Grand temple in 2020. Infrastructure construction major L&T built the temple at a cost of ₹1,800 crore, which was met largely through donations.
The city has already witnessed a new airport at an investment of ₹1,400 crore and a revamped railway station. Meanwhile, the central government has committed investment to the tune of ₹11,000 crore while the state government has announced to pump in another ₹30,500 crore by the end of this year. Ayodhya Master Plan 2031 envisages an additional ₹85,000 crore worth of investments in the city till 2031.
“UP appears headed for a tipping point, scripting a success story as it recognizes and reaps the opportunities sweeping the new India, working on key enablers to attain a sizable economic order,” says the SBI Research report.
